The Sweetheart With A Dark Side
by SideshowJazz1
Summary: When Geoff signed up for Total Drama Island, he persuaded his 10-month younger sister Elle to do the same. She assumes that she can be the sweetest girl on the island, but Heather drives her completely insane? Will her dark side come out? And what about the next two seasons? Will she stay sweet, or will her dark side become the only true Elle left? OC/Canon pairing included. R&R!
1. Chapter 1: Arrival

**A/N: I must be insane to be writing this. Seriously. It's my third Total Drama OC story. So far I've done a younger contestant who falls for Duncan and is friends with Courtney, a new World Tour contestant who is on to Alejandro pretty early but still falls for him, and now I'm doing this one. Thing is, one character I never really focused on is Geoff. And I've only written a character on the Killer Bass, before, so how about writing a character who's on the Screaming Gophers?**

**Plot: Elle is Geoff's younger sister by 10 months. When they're both accepted to Total Drama Island and are split up by their teams, will she still be able to hang out with them? And Elle will be paired with someone. Please review!**

**Oh yes, and I know this does conflict with Geoff's backstory with his family, so this is AU in that way.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Total Drama. I do own Elle.**

"Okay, Elle...and action!"

I smiled at the camera, pulling my hair into a ponytail. "Hi! So maybe you're thinking I'm boring. Or maybe you think I look a lot like that party animal with the cowboy hat if you already watched the audition tape. Yeah, that's my brother. And by the way, that's why you're putting me on Total Drama Island. You want drama? I'll give you drama! You can do absolutely anything, but we won't drive each other any more insane than living together has!" I grinned. "Oh yeah, and by the way, I play the game how I play everything: Fair, fun and let's not forget – I'm in it to win it!" I turned back to my cameraman. "That's it."

My brother Geoff, who was recording my audition tape for the new reality show, let his finger hover over the button to end the recording. "I don't know...wouldn't they prefer to see the real you?"

He always teased me like that. "Seriously, Geoff, turn that thing off. I'm done."

He finally finished the recording, and grinned at me. "So you think that'll get them to accept you? Seriously, little sister, you need to show your wild side! Where's the Elle that comes out when she's at the clubs?"

"Locked up in the closet." I quipped. "Like the Geoff you bring out when there's something you have to take seriously. Like the fact that Mom said you're not supposed to be out every night during finals, except you've found a way to get in and out of the house for the last five nights. And you dragged me out three nights ago to film your audition tape while you were at the beach, and then you convince me to apply too! I take things seriously, something you could learn!"

"Chill, sis! That party was awesome, wasn't it? We both had fun."

Having grown up the way we had, Geoff and I were both party animals to a point. I could take about two a week, maybe three. If there wasn't one six days a week with Geoff, he'd throw one every night Mom and Dad were out that week (they were out usually two nights) and make sure it was the biggest one yet. To be honest, I adored Geoff, and I always would. We were close for siblings, mainly because even though we were only ten months apart, he took his job as the older sibling very seriously when he thought it was important...like when he was already getting into stuff like alcohol when he'd first turned sixteen and I was still fifteen, he wouldn't let me have any. And he also wanted to make sure he knew every boyfriend I had so he'd know they were decent (which is why I'd only dated three boys ever and none of them were serious...but he couldn't stop me having a few hook ups at parties, since they weren't serious and I didn't get caught).

"I'll admit I enjoyed it," I sighed jokingly, "If you admit that I'm more likely to be accepted than you."

_**TOTALDRAMATOTALDRAMATOTALDRAMATOTALDRAMATOTALDRAMATOTALDRAMATOTALDRAMA**_

Two weeks later, the two of us were speeding on a boat to the five star resort at Camp Wawanakwa with all our luggage for the next eight weeks. Yes, we'd both been accepted!

We could see the host, Chris McLean, and three other competitors, all about the same age as us (sixteen). There was a pudgy but short girl with huge glasses and braces, a tall muscled guy with dark skin, and a scowling goth girl.

Geoff jumped off the boat first. "Chris McLean!" he exclaimed brightly. "Sup, man! It's an honour to meet you, man!"

"The Geoffster!" Chris answered. "Welcome to the island, man."

"Thanks, man."

"They say 'man' one more time, I'm gonna puke." muttered the goth.

I jumped off the boat too. "Hey, Chris." I greeted the host, looking around for our accomodations. "Um, where's the hotel you were talking about?"

"Yeah, about that." Chris began. "We had to downgrade where you're staying a bit." He pointed to a couple of crappy cabins further up. "Anyway, Elle, welcome to Camp Wawanakwa!"

I sighed and rolled my eyes, but went to stand with the other four as another boat dropped the next competitor off.

"Everybody," Chris introduced, "This is Lindsay."

The girl standing there was very pretty, a blonde with blue eyes and a bandanna, wearing brown cowgirl boots.

"Not too shabby." Chris muttered.

"Hi!" Lindsay said in a soft girly voice. "Okay, you look so familiar..."

"I'm Chris McLean." Chris answered. Lindsay looked blank. "The host? Of the show?"

"Oh, that's where I know you from!" Lindsay said brightly, smiling again.

I rolled my eyes. Wasn't it obvious?

But I'd take Lindsay over the next camper any day. At least Lindsay said hi. The girl who stepped onto the dock next scowled, took off her sunglasses, and her eyes flickered over all of us critically.

She ignored Chris as he acknowledged "Heather."

The short girl jumped in front of her, calling "Hi! Looks like we're your new friends for the next eight weeks!" Heather cringed away from her, looking disgusted.

I was about to ask the short girl's name when punk music began playing from the next boat. A boy with a lot of piercings and a green mohawk was the next person. He jumped onto the dock, a scowl on his face.

"Duncan, dude." Chris greeted him.

"I don't like surprises." the boy said, holding up a fist.

"Yeah, your parole officer warned me about that, man." Chris said. "He also told me to give him a holler any time and have you returned to juvie."

Duncan's expression changed. "Okay, then." he walked to where the rest of us were standing. As he passed Heather, he said "Meet you by the campfire, gorgeous."

"Drop dead, you skeez." was her reply. "I'm calling my parents." she added. "You can _not_ make me stay here."

Chris held up a bunch of papers.

At that moment, there was another boat, a boy in a red tracksuit waterskiiing on it. "Ladies and gentlemen," Chris announced, "Tyler!" At that moment, this Tyler guy went flying, falling into the luggage everyone had placed in the same space on the dock. Tyler's bag fell into the water, the splash soaking Heather.

"Ugh, my shoes!" she exclaimed.

I didn't know what it was, but I disliked Heather already, and I couldn't help but grin when she was the one who was soaked.

"Wicked wipeout, dude!" called Chris. Tyler gave us the thumbs up before climbing out of the luggage.

The next boy was holding a keyboard as he arrived. He had little square glasses and stubble. "Welcome to camp, Harold." Chris greeted him.

There was a pause.

"What's he looking at?" lisped the shortest girl in a loud whisper.

"So you mean this show is at a crappy summer camp and not on some big stage or something?" Harold asked. Chris confirmed it. "Yes! That is so much more favourable to my skills!"

Next was a boy Chris introduced as Trent. He was tall with a friendly face and green eyes, and he carried a guitar case. "Hey, good to meet you, man!" he greeted Chris. "Saw you on that figure skating show. Nice work."

"Hey, thanks, man." Chris answered. "I knew I rocked that show!"

"I saw that!" said the shortest girl. "One of the guys dropped his partner on her head! So they got immunity that week."

"Lucky." remarked Harold. "I hope I get dropped on my head."

"Me too!" said Lindsay, sounding completely sincere about it.

"So, this is it?" Trent said, frowning. "Alrighty then." He stood with the rest of us, immediately smiling at the goth. She scowled at first, but the minute he looked away, she smiled for the first time.

I caught her eye and mouthed "_He likes you." _Mistake. She scowled again and shrugged. I smiled at her apologetically as the next camper arrived, a girl with pale blonde hair in a ponytail, holding a red and orange surfboard.

"Hey. What's up?" she greeted Chris.

"All right." Chris grinned. "Our surfer chick, Bridgette, is here!"

"Nice board." Duncan said bitingly. "This ain't Malibu, honey."

"I thought we were going to be on a beach." Bridgette explained.

"We are!"

Yeah, but not a surfing beach. Not a swimming beach, either. It was covered with litter and the water was clouded with pollution.

"Great." Bridgette muttered, but she greeted everyone else nicely enough.

I could immediately see something in Geoff's face change. I'd seen it millions of times, whenever he had a crush on someone. He immediately introduced himself to Bridgette, trying to give her his most suave smile. She immediately turned to face him, half the guys having to duck as her surfboard turned with her.

"Dang! Watch the board, man!" Harold told her.

The shortest girl also introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Beth!"

Bridgette turned again, the boys having to duck again. "Hey."

"Okay, we've all met surfer girl." Heather muttered, still trying to wring water out of her long dark hair. "Can we get on with the show, please?"

"Someone missed their double cappacino macchiato this morning." Duncan teased her.

"Get bent."

"Our next camper is Noah!" Chris announced, rubbing his head from getting hit by Bridgette's board earlier.

Noah was a skinny dark little thing. "You got my memo about my life-threatening allergies?"

"I'm sure someone did!" Chris said brightly.

"Good, is this where we're staying?"

"No, it's your mother's house, and we're throwing a party!" Duncan informed him. I couldn't help giggling.

Noah didn't seem to find this funny. "Cute. Nice piercings, original, do them yourself?"

"Yeah, you want one?" Duncan grabbed Noah's lip as a threat.

"Uh, no thanks, can I have my lip back, please?" Noah said, still managing to sound calm. "Thanks."

Next was an African-Canadian girl, who waved from the boat, yelling "What's up, y'all, Leshawna's in the house!" She stepped onto the dock, greeting Chris as she passed. "Feel free to quit now and save yourselves the trouble, cause I came to win!" She grinned at everyone. She high fived the muscled dark guy.  
"I've never seen a girl like you in real life before." Harold remarked.

"Excuse me?" Leshawna said.

"You're real big. And loud."

Leshawna scowled. "What did you say to me? Oh no you didn't! You have not seen anything yet, I show you big, baby!" Some of the guys had to hold her back.

I grinned, liking her already. "Hey, Leshawna!" I greeted her, whispering "Don't take any notice of that dweeb. He probably doesn't mean anything by it."

Leshawna smiled at me, just as the next two campers arrived, two girls dressed alike in stripy tops and pink shorts.

"Ladies." Chris greeted them, "Sadie, Katie, welcome to your new home for eight weeks!"

"Omigosh, Sadie, look!" exclaimed the skinnier darker girl. "It's a summer camp!"

"Okay, I've always wanted to go to summer camp!" answered the plumper paler girl. "Eeee!" No, seriously, she squealed like that. Okay, so Katie was the dark one, and Sadie was the pale one. I'd need to remember that.

"Ezekiel," Chris greeted the next camper, a scruffy looking guy wearing a hat, "What's up, man?"

Ezekiel pointed up. "I think I see a bird..."

Trent snickered.

"Okay," Chris said, "I know you don't get out much. Been homeschooled your whole life, raised by freaky piarie people, just don't say too much and try not to get kicked off too early, okay."

"Yes, sir!"

The next camper was dorky, some guy with nice blue eyes attempting to be cool. "Cody!" Chris greeted him (wow, I'm using that phrase a lot). "The Codester! The Codemeister!"

"Dude, psyched to be here, man." Cody answered, his eyes raking over all of us. "I see the ladies have already arrived. Alright."

He was about to say something to Leshawna, but she said quickly "Save it, short stuff."

At that moment, Cody looked at me and grinned. "Hey, beautiful." he greeted me.

I smiled sweetly and said "If you're going to hit on someone else later on, you might want to move along."

The next girl to step onto the dock was some scary monobrowed girl with serious muscles in athletic gear.

"Eva." Chris acknowledged. "Nice. Glad you could make it."

The girl dropped her bags on Cody's foot. "Ow! What's in there, dumbbells?"

"Yes." Eva answered flatly.

"She's all yours, man." Duncan muttered to the muscled guy.

The next boy was huge and loud. "Woohoo!" he yelled. "Chris! What's happening! This is awesome! Woohoo!"

"Owen, welcome!" Chris said, trying to match the boy's enthusiasm.

"Awesome to be here, man!" Owen said, nearly crushing Chris in a hug. "Man, this is just so..."  
"Awesome?" the goth girl suggested with a smirk.

"Yes! Awesome!" yelled Owen. "Are you gonna be on my team?"

"Oh, I sure hope so." the goth muttered, drawing the 'crazy' signal next to her ear.

"You about finished?" Chris asked, frowning.

Owen put him back down. "Sorry, dude. I'm just so psyched!"

Chris nodded, already looking at the next boat. "Cool. And here comes Courtney!"

The girl on the next boat smiled and waved. She was quite pretty, with big dark eyes and shoulder-length brown hair. Chris helped her off the boat. "Thank you," she said, before walking over to us. "Hi, you must be the other contestants." she said. "It's really nice to meet you all." I raised my eyebrows. She seemed nice, but no way was she a teenager! Teenagers did not talk like that.

Then again, most of the teenagers I talked to were just as much into having fun as I was (my friends) or party-insane (Geoff and his friends).

Owen shook her hand. "How's it going, I'm Owen!"

"Nice to meet you," Courtney began, about to be sidetracked by the next boat "Ow...wow."

The next contestant had one word to describe him..._hot. _He looked like a life-size Ken doll and all the girls were mesmerized, including me. I heard Sadie fall to the ground behind me.

"This is Justin. Welcome to Total Drama Island." Chris greeted him.

"Thanks, Chris, this is great." the guy said.

"Just so you know, we picked you based entirely on your looks."

"I can deal with that." Justin shrugged.

"I like your pants!" Owen blurted out.

"Thanks, man."

"Cause they look like they're all worn out! Did you buy them like that?"

"Uh, no, just had them for awhile." Justin answered.

"Oh." Owen said. "Cool."

Finally, the last contestant was coming. Chris pointed her out. "Hey, everyone, Izzy!"

The girl, who had long curly red hair, smiled and waved. "Hi, Chris! Hi! Hi-" she gave a squeal as she jumped off the boat, missed the dock, hit her chin on it and fell into the water.

"Oh, that was bad." Tyler chuckled.

Courtney ran to the edge to help Izzy out of the water. "Guys, she could be seriously hurt."

Izzy seemed fine when she got out, though. "That felt...so..._good! _Except for hitting my chin. This is summer camp? That is so cool! Do you have paper mache here? Are we having lunch soon?"

"That is a good call!" exclaimed Owen.

"First things first." Chris answered. "We need a group photo for the promo. Everyone on the end of the dock!"

We obediently went to the end, posing. I wasn't short or tall, so I went into the middle, standing right behind Katie and Sadie, who were sitting back-to-back in the centre at the front. I was in front of Owen and next to Justin.

We were standing there for ages, because Chris forgot to take off the lens cap and then found the card was full. "Hang on!"

"Come on, man, my face is starting to freeze!" Leshawna called out impatiently.

"Got it! Okay!" called Chris. "Everyone, say "Wawanakwa'!"

"Wawanakwa!" we all chorused obediently...that was until the end of the dock broke under our weight and we were all dumped into the water.

"Okay, guys," Chris said, "Dry off and meet me at the campfire pit in ten!"

**I know, long (for me at least) and all filler. Next chapter will be a little more interesting. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2: Introductions

**Right! Let's continue! And yes, I made Owen's comment slightly more risque about being happy they had a part of the cabin with just guys. Just one little word change. Thanks for reviewing, RoyalBlueBunny and Twilight-WolfxXx. And to STALKER, I'm sorry, but that's on hiatus. Please don't review other fanfics to ask me to update.**

At the campfire pit, I sat down next to the goth girl. "So what's your name?" I asked. "I've heard everyone's except yours and that guy's." I waved a hand in the direction of the muscled guy.

"Gwen." the girl answered flatly.

"Don't mind me asking," I continued. "But are you mad about something?"

"I don't even want to be here." Gwen admitted. "Chris is such a jerk. I was prepared to come on this show, but not to come to this place which was not advertised on the application form." She looked at me and said "Elle, isn't it? So what are you so happy about?"

I shrugged. "I'm pissed at the producers for fooling us. But it's a reality show. I'm looking forward to trying to win and making friends. But if you really want to see happy, check out Geoff over there. I only really decided to audition for this show because he convinced me it would be fun – and because I thought there was no way either of us would be accepted." He was already laughing with a bunch of the other guys. Now I considered myself an outgoing person – I had a lot of friends (although only a few close ones), but it took me at least a few days to settle with a new gang of people. Geoff took about an hour to make a bunch of new best friends.

We didn't get a chance to talk any more, because everyone was here and Chris was telling us how the show would work. We'd be on camera all the time, for one thing. Duh. Apart from that, we'd be split into teams and compete in challenges. After each challenge, the losing team would send someone home, and they wouldn't ever be able to come back (I don't know why Chris bothered to say that – duh). The winner would be the person who stayed without getting voted off the longest.

"Excuse me," Duncan spoke up, "What will the sleeping arrangements be? Because I'd like to request a bunk under her." He pointed at Heather.

"They're not co-ed, are they?" she asked.

"No." Chris told her. "Girls get one side of each cabin and dudes get the other."

"Excuse me, Kyle?" said Lindsay. "Can I get a cabin with a lake view, since I'm the prettiest?"

"Okay, you are, but that's not really how it works here. And it's _Chris._"

Katie and Sadie grabbed hold of each other's hands. "I have to live with Sadie or I'll die!" Katie declared.

"And I'll break out in hives." Sadie added. "It's true!"

"This cannot be happening." Gwen muttered.

"Aw, come on, guys, it'll be fun!" Owen said happily. "It'll be like a big sleepover!"

Finally, Chris split us into teams, and I knew for a fact that these weren't random, because not only did he split up Sadie and Katie, but he admitted when I questioned that he'd purposely put Geoff and I on different teams. "Better ratings. Sibling rivalry always gets good ratings."

My team was the Screaming Gophers, and I was with Beth, Gwen, Cody, Owen, Lindsay, Heather, Katie, Justin, Noah, Trent and Leshawna. Geoff was on the Killer Bass with everyone else: Duncan, Sadie, Eva, Courtney, Ezekiel, Tyler, Bridgette (Lucky her, I guess – Geoff smiled when her name was called), Izzy, Harold and the big muscled guy, who was called DJ.

"But Katie's a Gopher!" Sadie protested. "I have to be a Gopher!"

Courtney put a hand on her shoulder. "Sadie, is it? Come on, it'll be okay."

Likewise, I put my arm around a crying Katie, telling her "Just because you're not on the same team doesn't mean you and Sadie won't see each other. You can still sit together at meal times and talk in between challenges."

"This is so unfair!" Sadie cried from where her team was standing. "I miss you, Katie!"

Katie turned back to call "I miss you too!" as we started walking to the cabins.

Finally, Chris showed us to our cabins. There were two rooms in each – boys got one room, girls got the other. He also showed us the confessional outhouse, where we could just talk.

Us girls went into our cabins first. "Bunk beds?" Heather frowned. "Isn't that kind of...summer camp?"

"That's the idea, genius." Gwen muttered, carrying her suitcase and what appeared to be an art portfolio to one of the bunks.

"Shut up, weird goth girl." Heather snapped.

Gwen didn't reply, but I did. "Look, Heather," I said calmly, "We're on the same team, and we should try to be friends so we can work together. Save the name calling for the merge at least." Not that I liked Heather or anything, but I figured I should be nice.

Heather scoffed. "Whatever. Party dresser." she muttered, probably referring to the fact that I happened to be wearing a miniskirt and a halter top. Hey, the skirt was not that hard to run in, and I had to look nice on TV! Of course, Geoff had laughed at me and just wore the first things he found, but I think he'd deliberately chosen an open shirt with no buttons so he could show off his abs.

I put my bag on the top bunk. Lindsay and Heather also shared a bunk, and Beth and Leshawna shared the other one. Katie had the fourth pair of bunks to herself.

Lindsay asked about where she could plug in her straightening iron.

"I think there are some in the communal bathroom." Chris told her.

Lindsay looked confused. "Communal bathroom? But I'm not Catholic!"

I giggled.

"Not communion, communal." Chris reiterated.

"It means we shower together." Gwen muttered, sitting on the steps of the cabin. "Idiot."

Lindsay started wailing, and a few of the boys looked out from their side.

"I'm glad we're in our own cabin with just guys, you know what I'm saying?" Owen remarked. Noah and Trent gave him weird looks, and Owen immediately realized what he'd said. "I mean, no! I didn't mean it like that! I love chicks. I just don't want to sleep with them...I mean..."

I couldn't help snickering a bit, and I plopped down beside Gwen. "So, guess we're teammates."

"Guess so." she muttered with obvious sarcasm, not looking at me.

I sighed. "What is up with you? I get you're mad at Chris, but I'm trying to be friendly with you."

"Look," Gwen said, "You don't have to pretend to like me just cause we're on the same team."

I frowned. "I'm not pretending to like you! I wouldn't go out of my way to talk to Heather, or Lindsay for that matter. I just like to get along with people. Come on, Gwen, I just want to be friends."

The goth just shrugged, but she half-smiled, so I counted that as a victory. I'd just have to work at being friends with her.

At lunch time, we all met at the mess hall, and this was where we met Chef Hatchet. "Listen up!" he bellowed. "I serve it three times a day, and you will eat it three times a day! Grab a tray, get your food, and sit your butts down NOW!"

"Excuse me, will we be getting all the major food groups?" I heard Beth ask as Chef dumped a bun and some kind of red substance on her plate.

I wasn't going to ask.

Soon, it was my turn. I was standing behind Gwen and Lindsay.

After Lindsay checked about what kind of foods she could and couldn't eat, Gwen told her it wouldn't be a problem, but she had her own problem. "I hate to be predictable and complain on the first day, but I think mine just moved."

In answer, Chef used some kind of hammer on her food, splattering it all over her.

"Okay then!" Gwen said quickly, leaving.

Chef glared at me. "So, what's your complaint, blondie?"

"No complaint!" I said brightly. "Just going now...thanks, Chef."

Most of the teams were sitting together, except for Katie and Sadie who were both sitting with the Killer Bass, so I decided to sit with them too.

"Any room here?" I asked brightly. DJ slid over to make room for me, so I sat down between him and Katie.

"Don't you want to sit with your team?" Courtney asked, giving me a hard stare.

I shrugged. "I'm sleeping in the cabins with them, and competing with them. I can be friends with people on this team. I don't see you asking Katie about it, and she's on my team too. If she can sit with Sadie, I can sit here too." I smiled. "Besides, ever heard 'blood is thicker than water'? I wouldn't call myself a tagalong, but there's got to be _some _reason Geoff made me sign up for this with him."

"Uh...yeah." Geoff said, slightly blushing. "My little sister can hang out with us. Not like there's any rule against it."

"I'm only ten months younger than you." I pointed out. "You don't have to call me your little sister."

"That's what you are." he pointed out, with a smirk that made me think he thought he'd annoyed me. "I think I'm allowed to call you my little sister. Or would you rather I called you _baby _sister?"

Okay, that was annoying. I flushed pink. "No, no...it...it's okay. Little sister is fine."

"Our teams don't have to fight except in challenges." Bridgette said, and she smiled at me. "Your name's Elle, right? Mine's Bridgette."

I smiled back. "Yeah, I remember. Thanks, Bridgette."

Courtney still looked at me suspiciously, but didn't say anything.

Chef's food was disgusting. I concentrated as hard as I could on the conversation, just so I would be able to keep down the food, since I knew I wouldn't get anything better for lunch.

"Welcome to the main lodge!" Chris said cheerfully as he walked in.

Geoff turned. "Yo, my man, can we order a pizza?" He barely ducked the meat cleaver thrown at him, but managed to escape with his head (and his cowboy hat) still in place. "Whoa, it's cool!" he said in defense. "Brown slop is cool!"

Apparently, our first challenge was starting in an hour.

"What do you think they'll make us do?" Katie asked nervously.

"It's our first challenge." DJ reminded her. "How hard could it be?"

By that time, I'd started to work out who I liked and disliked particularly. On the Killer Bass, I already liked DJ. He seemed friendly, nonconfrontational and gentle. Bridgette was also really, really nice, I'd noticed. On the other hand, I was already starting to dislike Courtney. Teams weren't everything.

On my team, I didn't exactly dislike Lindsay, but if she was really as stupid as she acted, she was going to severely try my patience. And Heather had already made it clear that she was a colossal bitch. Nothing nice had come out of her mouth since she arrived. Gwen and Leshawna I liked. Gwen seemed a little hard to get to know, but she'd open up in time, and I'd talked to Leshawna in the cabins. She was loud, like Harold said, but although her attitude was a bit in-your-face, I could tell she was someone you wanted as a friend, and in my case, it wasn't just because I didn't want to make an enemy of her. She was really nice once you got on her good side. All the boys seemed nice, but I liked Trent more than the others, mostly. He seemed very laid back and cool, although I hadn't spoken directly to him yet. It helped that he was extremely good-looking. More so than Justin, probably, since he wasn't just a Ken doll.

Anyway, back to our first challenge. An hour after Chris announced it, all twenty-three of us were standing on a high cliff in our bathing suits, waiting to jump off.

"Oh, shit." DJ murmured, regretting what he'd said to Katie.

**We'll pick up where the second episode goes to next! So, review now?**


	3. Chapter 3: Settling Challenge

**So we're getting onto the first challenge!**

Chris explained to us the whole challenge. First, each of us had to dive off the cliff into the water. Most of it was infested with man-eating sharks, but there was a safe zone which was shark-free, which we would aim for. Then, we'd go to the shore and take some crates to the campground, which we would then open and use whatever was inside to build a hot tub. The winning team got to have a hot tub party that evening, while the losing team would have to vote someone off.

"Killer Bass, you're up first." Chris said.

"Oh, wow." Bridgette murmured. "So...who wants to go first?"  
There was a pause.

"Don't sweat it, guys." Owen muttered to our team. "I heard these shows always make the interns do the stunt first to make sure it's survivable."

That made me feel marginally better about having to make the jump later.

Finally, Bridgette was the first to jump. "Fine. I'll go. It's no big deal, just an insane cliff dive into a circle of angry sharks..." I watched as she executed her jump perfectly and landed in the safe zone. It didn't look that hard at all!

One by one, most of the other Bass team members jumped. But DJ wouldn't do it.

"Scared of heights?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, ever since I was a kid." DJ admitted.

"That's okay, big guy." Chris said. "Unfortunately, that also makes you a chicken. So you'll have to wear this for the rest of the day." He put a chicken hat on DJ's head and sent him back down. Courtney made some excuse about having a medical condition that prevented her from diving off cliffs, but bascially, she chickened out too.

Sadie refused to jump without Katie, and they begged Chris again to let them be on the same team.

"I'll switch places with her." Izzy offered.

"All right, fine!" Chris groaned. "You're both on the Killer Bass now. Izzy, you're on the Screaming Gophers."

Well, at least Katie wouldn't have to mope all the time. Who knew, Izzy might turn out to be a good team member.

After Katie and Sadie jumped, hand in hand, it was our team's turn. And Chris said if that less than two of us chickened out, we'd get wagons to pull our crates in.

"I'm sorry." Heather said coldly. "There's no way I'm doing this."

"Why not?" Beth asked.

"Hello, national TV! I'll get my hair wet."

"You're kidding, right?" Gwen asked. I was thinking along the same lines.

"If she's not doing it, I'm not doing it!" Lindsay said, and the two girls smiled at each other.

"Oh, you're doing it." Leshawna said fiercely.

"Says who?" challenged Heather.

"Says me. I'm not losing this challenge cause of your hair, you spoilt little daddy's girl."

Heather scowled at her. "Back off, ghetto glamour too tight pants wearing rap star wannabe."

Leshawna scowled back. "Mall shopping ponytail wearing _Teen Girl _reading high school prom queen!"

There was a pause.

"Well, at least I'm popular."

There was another pause. Justin took a moment to admire himself in his hand mirror.

"Justin, focus!" I hissed.

He shrugged. "What? I have to make sure I stay gorgeous."

"You're jumping!" Leshawna yelled.

"Make me!" Heather yelled back.

Now this was awesome. Leshawna just picked up Heather and threw her off the cliff. Huh, that was good.

"Hey, Leshawna?" I said. "I don't think I'll be able to make that cliff dive. Could you...uh..." I really didn't want to jump, and I didn't want to be thrown off, either, but I couldn't see any way to help my team win unless I was thrown off, since I just couldn't jump.

Leshawna grinned, knowing what I was about to say. "No problem, honey!" She picked me up (with slightly more care than Heather and threw. I screamed the whole way down, but I landed in the safe zone, where Heather was seething.

"Leshawna, you are SO dead!" she called up.

"Thanks, Leshawna!" I called up.

"Hey, I threw you – both of you – into the safe zone, didn't I? Now I just hope I can hit it too."

One by one, everyone except Beth jumped – she got a chicken hat, same as Courtney and DJ. Izzy even laughed manically as she fell. Justin was the only one that didn't land in the safe zone, but the sharks not only left him alone, but carried him to shore, just because he smiled at them. Soon, only Owen was left.

"You guys need this jump for the win!" Chris called through a megaphone. "No pressure, dude." He paused. "Okay, there's pressure."

We were all calling encouragement up to Owen, but he did take ages to do it. Who cares, he did it, and he landed safely, and we got the wagons to pull our crates with.

Opening the crates with our teeth (no, seriously, that was what we had to do) was harder, but we were already way ahead of the other team.

Izzy opened the first crate pretty easily. She straightened up and then cried out. "Ow! Rope burn on my tongue!"

While Leshawna and I got out the tools from our crate, Heather came up to us, Lindsay close behind. "I just want to say," she said to Leshawna, "I didn't mean all that about you being a rap star wannabe, and I love your earrings. They're so pretty." She noticed I was there, and smiled again. "By the way, Elle, I didn't get a chance to tell you on the cliff, but that bikini you were wearing is just perfect for your colouring."

"Straight up?" Leshawna asked. "Well...I'm sorry about knocking you over the cliff."

I didn't trust Heather, but I figured I might as well be nice, so I smiled, but said nothing.

"No worries." she said brightly. "I needed a push. Truce?"

Leshawna didn't hear Lindsay and Heather talking afterwards, but I did. Heather admitted that she didn't mean anything she'd said. "They're going down. And PS, those are the ugliest earrings I've seen in my life. I did kind of mean what I said about Elle's bikini...but only because she can't pull off anything that showed more skin than that thing."

"So if you hate them, why are you being nice to them?" Lindsay asked her.

"You ever seen one of these shows before? Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer."

"Oh...I'm your friend, right?"

"Oh, yeah. For now."

I scowled and walked back, asking Leshawna "Did you believe what Heather said?"

Leshawna considered. "No, but I couldn't say so, could I? There's something about that girl that is just so fake."

I nodded. "Yeah, I don't trust her either. Too bad she's on our team. I hope she won't be too useful, then I'd have a good reason to vote her off. I'm not voting people off without a reason."

Anyway, we won the challenge. As if it wasn't enough for the Killer Bass, Katie and Sadie had accidentally squatted in poison ivy and weren't much help, while Courtney had been bitten by something and her eye was swelling up. Oh yeah, and their hot tub broke in seconds.

I sat with my team at dinner time that night, enjoying our victory. I was already good friends with Leshawna, and Gwen was starting to warm up a little bit.

Lindsay was still hanging out with Heather, and Beth had joined them, so it looked like I wouldn't be especially friendly with them. It didn't mean I could be civil, I just didn't think I could try to be friends with Heather. She already didn't like me.

Izzy was a bit strange. She didn't really say much, but what she did say usually made no sense. But the boys were okay. Cody didn't flirt with me again, Owen was so funny (although after experiencing his noxious gas for the first time, I wasn't in a hurry to experience it again). Noah was more of a bookworm, not taking much interest in what was going on, and Justin was more interested in himself than anything else, but Trent turned out to be really nice, and really laid back. I definitely wanted to hang out with him more. I didn't like him like that or anything, but he seemed like a great guy.

I kept an ear out while the other team was talking about who to vote out. Duncan wanted to vote off Courtney or DJ (probably because they jumped off the team). When Courtney protested, Bridgette asked her who she'd pick.

Courtney looked around, and then pointed at Tyler. "What about him?"

"No!" cried Lindsay from our table. "I mean...no salt, there's no salt on the table. Bummer." she said nervously.

I winked at her and mouthed "_Lindsay and Tyler, hmm?"_

Lindsay blushed, which was all I needed to see. I gave her my sweetest smile to let her know I wasn't trying to be mean or anything.

While we partied in our hot tub that night, the Killer Bass voted off Ezekiel. He made some sexist comments about girls, saying that guys were stronger and smarter, and his team got pissed.

I got Geoff to tell me this. "But just you Gophers wait, we'll win the next challenge!" he grinned.

I laughed. "In your dreams, bro! We beat you once, we can do it again!"

Geoff laughed with me. "As long as we keep things light and have fun, it's all cool." he said. "I mean, the hundred grand might be the main thing, but this game isn't going to split us up, right, Elle?"

"Of course not." I said confidently. "And I'm still going to hang out with your team from time to time, no matter what Courtney says!"

**The Awake-A-Thon next! Think Elle will be able to win it?**

**Why didn't anyone review? Doesn't anyone like (or hate) it?**


	4. Chapter 4: Stay Awake

**Okay, so let's go! Thanks for reviewing, RoyalBlueBunny...all reviewers need to do is take the time to say "I read and enjoyed it". I'd be happy with that.**

There was supposed to be twenty-six episodes, so some challenges would last days, and other times, we'd get to take a breather for a couple of days. This week, we had the hot tub challenge, one day to just get to know each other, and then our next challenge.

By the end of our first breather day, I knew everyone's names perfectly, no matter what team they were on. Gwen finally seemed to accept me trying to be friends with her, and I was already becoming friends with Leshawna. I also talked to Trent a bit, and he was really cool, definitely the guy I liked most on our team. On the Killer Bass, I definitely liked Bridgette the most. I also asked Geoff specifically, and he'd admitted that he did really like her. He didn't say he liked her in the way I guessed, but I was pretty sure he did. Also on the team, I grew to like DJ. He didn't say much, which was actually why I started talking to him. But he turned out to be a really sweet guy.

But the next day, we were all woken up by a horn.

"It's seven in the morning!" Leshawna exclaimed, sticking her head out the window. "Do I look like a farmer to you?"

We all had to get dressed double-quick and get ready for the challenge. I noticed Cody trying to make a grab for Eva's MP3 player, but she scared him off.

"Morning, campers, hope you slept well." Chris said brightly.

"Hi, Chris." Heather said cheerfully. "You look really buff in those shorts."

I turned to Gwen and mimed gagging, earning a smirk from her.

"I know." replied Chris to Heather's compliment. "Okay, I hope you're all ready, because your next challenge starts in exactly one minute!"

"I'm not sure that's enough time to eat breakfast." Owen frowned.

Chris had a suspiciously happy smirk on his face. "Oh, you'll get breakfast, Owen...right after you complete your twenty kilometre run around the lake!"

"Oh, so you're funny now." Eva said sarcastically, starting towards Chris, fists clenched. "You wanna know what I think would be funny-" Duncan and Geoff had to hold her back.

"Eva, try to control your temper!" I heard Courtney whisper to her.

I went to the confessional for the seconds I had. "Running around the lake? I knew this would be tough, but not boring. If it goes on like this, I am going to kill Geoff for getting me to sign up for this."

We were very lucky to be the first team back. Harold was last, meaning we won.

Except Chris told us it wasn't the challenge. However, we didn't care after we had the next bit. Chris showed us a table full of the most delectable food ever. After picking at the stuff Chef served us for the last few days, I think half of us wanted to cry. All of us gorged ourselves on the buffet, especially Owen. Most of us could barely breathe afterwards.

Finally, it was time for the next part of the challenge.

"What more do you want from us?" Gwen asked.  
"Weird goth girl is right, haven't we gone through enough?" Heather protested.

"Don't call her that!" I hissed.

"Shut up, party slut." she whispered back. Okay, that was over the line. She was attacking me because of my clothes, again, but her shorts were as short as my skirt. Was she seriously calling me a slut for wearing a miniskirt?

"Your shorts are shorter than my skirt..." I whispered, adding sweetly, "And I think they're outdated."

Heather gasped at my comment.

"You two about finished?" Chris asked. Heather and I looked back at him, and kept our mouths shut. "Good. In answer to your question, Heather, I thought about it and...no. It's time for the Awake-A-Thon!"

The challenge was pretty simple – stay awake for as long as possible.

"So, what you're saying is that the twenty k run and the turkey eating frenzy was part of your evil plan to make it harder for us to stay awake?" Gwen asked.

"That's right, Gwen!"

The last camper awake would win immunity for the team.

I stayed awake by talking to people, on both teams. But by twelve hours in, everyone was looking really tired. At least I wasn't the first to fall. Owen was the first to fall at twelve hours.

Heather walked a little way away from the rest of us, calling to two of the other girls. "Lindsay, Beth, can I talk to you for a second?"

I wasn't sure what she was up to, so I tried to be inconspicious as I followed them. Luckily, Heather didn't seem to notice me and told the girls that she wanted to ally with them and take them to the final three with her. "You should know that this is a very big deal. I am placing my trust in you. And trust is a two way street."

Lindsay and Beth nodded.

"So you'll do everything I say?"

The girls nodded again. I frowned. This was bad. If Heather had those two on their side, she had three votes when we lost.

By the twenty-four hour mark, Bridgette and Izzy were both out. So was Noah, Katie, and Sadie. Tyler had fallen asleep slightly earlier, but woke up almost immediately.

"Congratulations, campers!" Chris said. "Time to take things up a notch." He held up a book. "Fairy tales!"

While Chef played the harp, Chris read out something. "_Once upon a time_, _there was, inside this boring kingdom, a boring village. In this boring, sleepy village, filled with boring village who did very boring things..."_

I'd been hanging out around the Killer Bass, mainly with Geoff. In spite of being on different teams, we had been keeping each other awake until then. But I couldn't stand it any longer, and just decided to give up. I only had enough energy to walk back to my team's side where I was supposed to be before I was out.

I woke up before the Awake-A-Thon had ended. It was at the final five – Gwen, Trent and Heather on our team, with Eva and Duncan on the other. Chris let the rest of us take a shower, while the other five stayed. I chilled in the cabin for a bit with a few of the other girls.

"So, Beth," I said to the shorter girl, "An alliance with Heather, huh? Are you sure that's a good idea?" I wouldn't have said anything if Heather had been around, but she wasn't.

Beth nodded happily. "Yes! She's taking me to the final three...oh...I probably shouldn't have told you that." she said, realizing what she was saying.

I nodded. "It's okay, I heard everything she said. It's just that...Beth, she said you and Lindsay have to do everything she says. You realize that she's going to make you do everything for her?"

"Oh, that's okay." Beth said. "I mean, it's just paying for her help. I'd never get to the finals alone."  
I sighed. "Well, if ever you change your mind and think Heather's working you too hard, talk to me."

We won the Awake-A-Thon. The numbers dwindled until it was just Gwen and Duncan, and then, during a bathroom break, Duncan lost it, and just as Chris announced our winner, Gwen finally fell asleep. Our team got some well-deserved rest before the challenge the next day. Well, at least some of us did. I was out so early, that I only needed a two-hour power nap. Heather was also up, despite having been one of the final five, so I decidedd to attempt to make peace with her.

"Um, Heather?" I said. "I think we got off on the wrong foot on the first day here. After all, we're on the same team, so we should get along. I'm sorry for what I said about your shorts being outdated." I wasn't sorry at all – she was the one who'd called me a party slut – but it would be nice if she didn't outright hate me.

I don't think it worked. Heather's grey eyes stayed cold and icy, although she smiled. "Well...I'm sorry I called you a party slut." she said. "You're right. We should get along." And then she walked off.

I'd have to be on my guard. I still couldn't trust Heather.

Eva was voted off the Killer Bass after accusing them of stealing her MP3 player. I mistrusted Heather even more when it turned out she had it. She said she had found it by the campfire pit, but I didn't know if that was completely true. Either way, my team had a numbers advantage over Geoff's. They would have to really step up their game.

**Finally, that's over! I'm looking forward to getting through some of these early ones. Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5: First Loss

**Now, who enjoys dodgeball! Not me! But I do enjoy watching it. And Elle likes playing it...thanks for reviewing, Alex T and Madison Wooten (TDA and TDWT will be uploaded sometime next year in this story).**

**Thanks for your suggestions, Alex. However, most of my plans are to keep the elimination order the same. I did tweak a little bit in an earlier fic in a chapter not uploaded yet, and again, there is an extra elimination in a later season in this fic (as well as an extra challenge in TDA), but I find it easier to write if I stick to the original framework.**

Everyone was pretty tired by the next day. Most of my team was a little better, since the Killer Bass hadn't had a good night, and Duncan hadn't yet caught up on most of the sleep he'd missed.

"Harold snored all night." Courtney complained.

Chris laughed at the half-comatose Duncan. "Four nights with no sleep! How much are you hurting, dude?"

"Wanna find out?" Duncan threatened.

"No, it's cool, it's cool!"

When Harold got to the mess hall with the rest of us, it turned out someone had drawn a moustache on his face, and on seeing it, he actually _liked _it.

Finally, the last person walked in, Chris announcing her. "Hey everyone, it's Gwen!"

Like the Bass, Gwen hadn't caught up on enough sleep. Having managed to win just seconds ahead of Duncan, all she wanted to do was keep on sleeping. "I'm so tired, I can't feel my face." she sighed.

While this was going on, Heather was making up the rules for her alliance. "Number one: I am the captain of this alliance, so I get to make the rules. Number two..."

"Breaking the rules can result in getting kicked out of the alliance?" Lindsay suggested.

"Good." Heather smiled. "Number three: I can borrow any of your stuff without asking, but my stuff is strictly off-limits."

"I don't know about that last rule." Lindsay argued. Beth also frowned, and glanced over at me. I'd told her that Heather was going to make her and Lindsay do everything for her.

"That's cool." Heather said brightly. "I can change it. I can also find someone else to take to the final three with me."

If I had anything to say about it, both of Heather's alliance members would get further than she would. Sadly, Heather seemed like a strong competitor so far. I'd have to keep her on our team for now.

"Hey, wanna have some fun?" she asked her alliance. They both nodded, and she yelled over to the Killer Bass "Hey, fish heads! Way to kick out your strongest player! Why don't you just give up now?" Courtney answered by flinging some oatmeal at her, but it hit Gwen.

"Missed me!" Heather called out happily.

"Okay, campers, listen up!" called out Chris. "Your next challenge begins in ten minutes! And be prepared to bring it!"

Basically, this little stadium was set up on the beach, with benches on either side. Duncan immediately slumped on one of them, warning "Wake me up, and it'll be the last thing you do."

The challenge was basically playing dodgeball – cool! I wasn't too bad at it. "The first rule of dodgeball is-"

"Do not talk about dodgeball?" quipped Noah. Owen and I chuckled.

"As I was saying," Chris continued, "If you get hit with a ball..." he threw one, and it hit Courtney.

"Ow!"

"...you're out." Chris finished.

"You can't do that!" Courtney threw the ball back.

"If you catch the ball," Chris continued, "The thrower gets sent out and the catcher gets to bring in another team member on the court."

"Throwing balls, gee, another mentally challenging test." snarked Noah.

"I know, right?" Lindsay said sincerely.

I pulled the blonde girl to the side. "Lindsay, it's very simple." I explained, trying to sound as patient as possible. "All you should do is just keep away from the ball at all times." In spite of my telling her, she still needed to hear what she was meant to do when the ball came at her. When Chris asked him to demonstrate, Geoff actually hit Lindsay with it, and it left a pretty huge bump on her head.

Chris also told us that we could deflect the ball with another ball, but if said ball was knocked out of our hands, we were out. And our team would have to sit someone out each game, due to our numbers advantage. Anyway, whoever got out five players first won the game. The winners would be determined by the best out of five.

"Okay, we can't get lazy." Heather warned the team. "The Killer Bass are gonna be trying extra hard to catch up. Who wants to sit the first one out with Sleeping Beauty?" Meaning Gwen.

Noah gave a sigh and said "All right, I'll volunteer. Now let's see all you keeners get out there and dodge!"

So we went out onto the court. "Bring it on, fishies," Heather taunted, "Otherwise winning three in a row just won't be as satisfying!"

"Oh, you're going down!" Tyler answered. "We're gonna bring the dinner to the table, and then we're gonna eat it!"

Courtney facepalmed. I gave him a "WTF?" look. What did he mean by that?

Chef blew the whistle, and at first, the team seemed useless. Tyler tried throwing, and ended up hitting Sadie, who was a: not on our team, and b: not on the court.

Owen was an awesome player. He got Tyler out straightaway, and although Harold boasted about his "wicked skills", his first throw went high, but only rolled over to our side, and Leshawna got him out. "And that's how we roll!" she yelled, high-fiving Owen.

Katie was pretty good at the game, though, and gave Lindsay her second bruise of the day. Heather purposely threw a ball at Tyler when he and Lindsay waved to each other, even though he wasn't on the court. "Oopsies! Slipped!"

Courtney did try to retaliate by throwing a ball at Heather, but Owen caught it, getting Courtney out. However, when we brought Gwen in, DJ immediately got her out, although he apologized. Aw, that was so sweet of him!

Another ball thrown got knocked out of Leshawna's hands, leaving Cody as the only person left. But...wow, did that guy have powers. He did something really weird with the balls. The first one flew past DJ and then curved back around, hitting him. The second one had some electric charge so that it followed Katie until it hit her.

The first game was ours. It was time to win the next one.

"All right, Noah, you're up." Heather said.

"You know, you guys did such an awesome job in the last one that I don't want to mess up your mojo." he answered.

I rolled my eyes. "Noah, just play this one game. Everyone else has. The sooner you get onto the court, the sooner you can go back to reading your book."

"Let it go, Elle." Heather muttered. "He obviously doesn't want to win." She quickly whispered "We can vote him out if he continues to be useless."

It seemed like she thought I was serious about wanting to get along. Although I still didn't trust her. But Noah seemed like an obvious person to vote out. Heather had to prompt him to do anything, and when he did, it was just calling out "Woohoo, way to throw those murder balls. Go, team, go." And even then it was in a monotone.

We won the second game, too (although Heather got mad because Lindsay and Tyler went off together after they were taken out). But then the Bass woke Duncan and he had some amazing skills. The Bass focused on one person at a time and took all of us out, one by one. They won the next game.

Let me tell you, getting hit by DJ, Geoff, Courtney and Katie at the same time was painful. In the second game, I'd taken out Bridgette easily while Owen was taking out Katie and Sadie, but this was a true revenge.

"All right." Heather said to our team. "Not that Noah here cares, but we are not losing another game to these guys, got it? And where is Lindsay?" she added.

"Making out with Tyler, I suspect." I giggled. "Don't you remember? They went off together." And they'd had a thing for each other since the first day. Long story short, Lindsay got scared of a roach, Duncan killed it, and Tyler told her that if she ever saw one again to let him know so he could kill it the next time.

Heather left for a bit, and returned with Lindsay, ordering "Sit down and stay there." Poor Lindsay! I felt sorry for her, letting Heather of all people tell her what to do. She looked so dejected.

Beth got hit as they spoke, our second to last player.

"Sports, not my forte, remember?" Noah said without looking up.

Heather glared at him. "You know, you could at least give it a shot and pretend to care." The Bass won again, just as Tyler walked in, and Courtney started telling him off for hanging out with Lindsay. "It's bad enough that Geoff's sister keeps hanging around, but at least it's with all of us. If you're alone with that other blonde girl, she could be getting you to spill all of our weaknesses to her!"

Lindsay was, at that moment, making her hands have a conversation, or something – making the talking motion with both of her hands like they were sock puppets.

The last game was a tiebreaker, and Heather was becoming even more bossy than usual. It was a hard game, but it was satisfying to see Noah accidentally getting hit.

Finally, it was down to just Harold and Owen. Courtney hadn't wanted Harold to compete, but Geoff let him in.

I stated how I felt about that in the confessional. "Okay, so I consider myself a nice person. But I couldn't have brought Harold in. If Geoff isn't throwing this challenge, then I've spent the last sixteen years underestimating how truly lucky I am that I've got him for a brother!"

Finally, it came down to Harold vs Owen.

"Sorry, dude, but you've gotta go down!" Owen declared.

"Goodnight, Harold." I heard Duncan muttering.

But seconds later, Harold proved expert at dodging. Wow. And then he caught the last ball Owen threw at him, winning the Killer Bass their first challenge, and sending us to elimination.

"Gophers, what happened?" Chris asked.

Noah looked up. "What can I say? Weak effort."

"Oh, shut it, Noah." Gwen and I said at the same time, walking out.

"You know, for once, I agree with them." I heard Heather saying as we left. Gwen went off to the cabins to catch up on a bit more sleep, while I went to the dock and lay on my back, cloud watching.

I cast my vote pretty early, and I'm pretty sure everyone else made the same choice. Lindsay was useless at dodgeball, but Noah refused to try.

The ceremony was pretty much how I imagined. Basically, everyone who was still in got a marshmallow.

Finally, Noah was the only one left. "What, are you kidding me?" he exclaimed. "All right, see if I care. Good luck, because you just voted out the only one with any brains on this team." We all threw our marshmallow at him.

"You need to learn a little thing called respect, turkey!" Leshawna shouted at him.

After the ceremony, I confessed to Leshawna "I was actually kind of nervous there."

"How come?" she asked. "We had absolutely no reason to vote you off."

"I don't know." I murmured. "It just happens. Plus I remember Courtney was telling Tyler off about hanging out with Lindsay. And I know Heather's mad at Lindsay about it too, so I wouldn't be surprised if she was pissed that I try to spend time with that team, too. But the way I see it, us Gophers are a team. It's not like making friends on the other team is going to stop anyone from being a tough player."

Leshawna regarded me thoughtfully. "Girl, you are something else in the social sense." she murmured.

I laughed. "What, so you can't make friends on the other team?"

"I wouldn't. There's not much point until after the merge, anyway." Leshawna admitted. She grinned. "But then again, there's no way that I would swear eternal friendship to Heather, either!"

That made us both burst out laughing.

**Yeah, I wanted Elle and Leshawna to be friends. To be honest, I went in here expecting Elle to be better friends with Gwen, but her friendship with Leshawna seems more natural. Gwen's very introverted at this point, while Leshawna is outgoing. Elle is quieter, but very social. Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6: Enemy Teammate

**So that's all cool. BTW, the song reference I make is from the amazing musical _Wicked._**

The Bass were on a high until the next challenge, two days later. I sat with them at lunchtime on the day after the dodgeball battle and Courtney didn't say a word.

During our free time, I pulled Bridgette aside to talk to her, intending to bring up something with her. "Um, I've wanted to ask you something for the last few days." I admitted. "But you have to promise not to tell anyone else what I'm about to tell you."

Bridgette looked a bit surprised that I was choosing to confide in her, but she nodded.

"Well..." I said quietly, "I think Geoff has a crush on you."

The surprised look faded, and Bridgette smiled. "Well, to be honest, I sort of knew that already. He's pretty obvious. But sometimes he says the dumbest things around me. You're his sister, is that...normal for him?"

I giggled. "He always does that when he has a crush on someone. He'll try to act all suave and nice, but usually he'll just end up looking stupid. If he says anything in a complimentary tone that sounds weird, trust me, he's trying to flirt with you. One time, he had a crush on this girl, and he drove her away when he said that she looked like Naomi Campbell, except for her weight and she thought he was calling her overweight."

Bridgette giggled. "Thanks for telling me, Elle. I'll keep that in mind."

I shrugged. "Hey, I count you as a friend, and much as I love to see Geoff making a fool of himself, I think you guys would make a good couple."

Bridgette smiled. "Since we're talking about crushes, I should tell you. I think DJ likes you."

I frowned. "What? DJ? He's nice, I like talking to him, but a crush?"

"He doesn't usually say much." Bridgette told me. "Remember the first day, when you kept trying to draw him out? He's been more open since then. And I know you didn't notice, but he keeps looking at you with this smile whenever he thinks no one's looking. I wouldn't say anything to him, but what do you think?"

I didn't know. Sure, I thought DJ was a really sweet person, and I liked him a lot. I didn't know if I liked him in that way, though.

"Maybe I could talk to him more." I said. "I like him. Maybe I could like him in that way. Anyway, thanks for telling me, Bridge."

"Anytime." Bridgette said brightly.

I was woken up the morning of the next challenge by a voice whining "Oh, this is so way beyond bad!"

Lindsay was sitting on her bed, holding a tube. "I'm out of fake tanner already!"

"That's tragic, Lindsay." Gwen said sarcastically from her bunk.

"Now I have to actually like, sun tan, in the sun!" Lindsay continued. "Do you realize how wrinkly that can make your skin?" She went over to Gwen, who was the palest competitor here. "Oh, you totally do!"

After breakfast, Chris called us all to the outside amphitheatre.

"Are we going to see a musical?" Lindsay asked excitedly. "I love musicals, especially the ones with singing and dancing!"

I started singing under my breath _"Popular, you're gonna be popular, I'll teach you the proper ploys..."_

"Gwen, saved you a seat." Trent called to Gwen. Cody tried to copy Trent's relaxed stance and fell over. Tyler and Lindsay waved to each other, and Heather, who had her hair in a ponytail, purposely moved so that her ponytail smacked Lindsay In the face. The poor girl even found a black hair had come off on her tongue.

Chris explained that the challenge was a talent show. Each team had to pick their three most talented campers, who would compete tonight. They would be judged by Chef, and whoever got the best score out of nine would win the challenge for their team. "Anything goes, as long as it's legal." Chris added, making the 'I'm watching you' sign at Duncan.

Heather immediately appointed herself captain of our team, making her alliance the judges. Well, Gwen objected, but she was distracted when Trent got her an extra muffin. Aw, they were so sweet together.

"Trent, you're cool with me leading this project, aren't you?" Heather asked sweetly.

"Right on. Go for it." he answered.

I sighed and muttered to him quietly "You don't know Heather too well yet, do you?"

Although, I should add here, when Lindsay and Beth voted for Heather to dance her ballet at the talent show, they were right to do so. She was really good, even though light pink clashed with her dark hair. We also decided to have Trent play his guitar and sing, but we had some problems with the other campers. Heather condemned Owen's talent of burping the alphabet in one go, and Beth was good at twirling fire batons, but couldn't throw and catch without setting the bush on fire. Izzy's "dance of the rattlesnake" wasn't especially good, either.

I decided to try out, and sang the whole of "Popular" from the musical _Wicked, _doing a tiny bit of dance I'd learned when I took jazz lessons when I was fourteen.

"I vote for Elle!" Lindsay said immediately.

"Me too!" Beth added.

But Heather was torn between picking me...or picking Justin. I could sing, but all Justin had to do was pose. Modelling was his talent.

Finally, Heather sighed and said "Fine. Put Elle in."

I spent most of the day hanging out with Leshawna, as usual. Gwen went off by herself for a while (although Cody followed her), then she and Trent went off together.

But then I went into the cabin that afternoon. Heather was rummaging through a bunch of stuff, none of which was hers.

"Heather?"

My teammate turned around, looking shocked. Her features slightly relaxed, and she said "Hey, Elle. What's up?"

"I could ask you the same question." I said. "Isn't that stuff Gwen's? What are you doing with it?"

"Oh, I'm just straightening things up." Heather answered breezily.. "I messed up everyone's stuff in our room when I was looking for my toe shoes."

At that moment, we heard Lindsay's voice outside saying loudly. "Gwen! It's you! What are you doing here, outside the cabin, Gwen?"

I heard Gwen's voice say something more quietly, and then Lindsay answering "Oh, you're trying to get into the cabin! That's very interesting! Wait, stay here! We can get tans together, and you could totally use one!"

By the time Lindsay had stopped very loudly trying to divert Gwen, Heather had straightened everything up...although I did notice that everything out of place belonged to Gwen. That was weird. Heather was up to something, I was sure of it.

The Killer Bass had just an okay line up. DJ was going to do a ribbon dance, Geoff was doing skateboard stunts (he was pretty good at them) and originally, Courtney was going to play violin, but it got broken, so Bridgette was going to demonstrate how she could stand on her hands for twenty minutes.

I blocked out everything else, trying to get into character, since I was up first. Finally, I heard Chris introducing me, and I came out. "_Whenever I see someone less fortunate than I..." _I began.

I am going to admit something here and now. Yes, I did portray myself as a slightly less ditzy version of Lindsay. Chef gave me seven out of nine.

DJ went next, but his feet got tangled in the ribbons halfway through and Chef gave him two. The poor guy looked dejected, and I put a hand on his shoulder, remembering what Bridgette had told me. "It's okay, DJ." I said. "You were brilliant, up until then."

DJ looked slightly less dejected. "I don't usually do that." he said. "Get caught in the ribbon, I mean."

"I could tell." I said truthfully. "I personally think Chef should've given you another point. Everything else you did before that was perfect."

But even my score couldn't beat Trent's. He sang and played a song that went out to "someone special". "_They say that we've only got summer," _he sang, "_And I say that's really a bummer,_

_But we'll swim in the sun and have lots of fun, it'll just be the two of us,_

_Nothing to do, but just hang, so let me say only this:_

_Stick around, for just one kiss."_

Trent got eight out of nine. "Great song." I whispered to him as he came back. "So...I think Gwen liked it."

A tiny bit of red appeared on Trent's face, and I laughed at him. "Don't worry, I won't say anything. So does that mean your song was for Gwen?"

Bridgette was next, but apparently, she'd been eating too many chips beforehand, because she barfed everywhere. Owen, Katie, Sadie, and Leshawna were hit, and Katie was so grossed out that she puked all over Sadie. Then Bridgette slipped on her own puke, landing in Tyler's arms.

"Hey, puke on your own boyfriend!" snapped Lindsay.

Heather caught it. "On your own _what, _Lindsay?"

"I didn't say boyfriend!"

I groaned. "Lindsay is allowed to like Tyler." I snapped. "She is your alliance member, not your subject. Listen, Heather, you shouldn't have problems with inter-team dating, because Lindsay is not going to tell Tyler all our weaknesses or anything. She's not smart enough." Luckily, Lindsay didn't seem to hear me, in her own little world (she spaced out a _lot_).

Bridgette got two out of nine, and Chris had the place hosed down while Bridgette cleaned herself up. There wasn't enough time for everyone to do so, though. It was Heather's turn.

"Originally, I was going to dance for you." she said. "But instead, I want to celebrate team spirit with a collaboration." She held up a little black book.

Beside me, I heard Gwen gasp. "She wouldn't."

"So," Heather continued, "With words by Gwen, performance by me, enjoy."

Seriously? She was going to read out Gwen's diary to the whole camp and the world viewing? I couldn't believe it.

"_Okay, so I'm trying to ignore him," _Heather read, "_But he's just so cute! If they had custom-ordered a guy to be a distraction to me here, it would've been McHottie."_

In our team, Lindsay gasped (thinking it was Tyler, probably), and Cody pointed to himself, grinning.

"_We just totally connect," _Heather continued, "_He's pretty much the only person I can relate to here, and I know it's a cliché, but I LOVE guys who play guitar."_

Cody looked confused. "Wait...I don't play guitar."

I turned around and whispered "That's because she obviously wasn't talking about you!"

Gwen just ran off, not looking back. I glanced at Trent, who was looking a bit confused. It was obvious Gwen had been writing about him.

Heather got zero out of nine. Good. At least Chef knew that reading another girl's diary was way too mean. Now I had a good reason to vote off Heather.

As it happened, I had a chance to vote off Heather that night. Geoff broke his skateboard before making it onstage. The only person the Bass could send out was Harold, and that wasnt too hopeful for them. But Harold surprised us all by showcasing some of the "mad skills" he talked about. This particular skill was – beatboxing. To think, behind that skinny nerdy exterior was some seriously cool things.

Chef gave him full marks for his performance, meaning we lost, which was when I voted Heather off.

I was the third to last to be called up for my marshmallow. But the big shocker was that of all people, the person voted off was..._Justin!_

Yes, Justin. I didn't understand it either.

I talked to Geoff that evening again. "So it's all tied up now." he grinned with a smirk. "How much do you bet we get the numbers advantage over you guys next week, little sis?"

"Minus five bucks." I smirked back. "Anyway, Harold was the only winner this week, Mr Break-The-Board. Oh, and before I forget, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"Well...uh..." I stammered. "I was talking to Bridgette yesterday, and she said she thinks DJ might...you know...like me. I wasn't sure."

Geoff grinned. "I get it. You want me to ask him?"

"If you do it subtly." I said. "Just don't tell him I asked you, please!"

"Sure, Elle!" Geoff said brightly. "I won't tell."

I frowned for a moment. "Wait...so you have no concerns about me dating him? Every other time I've dated anyone, you've made me wait until you approve the guy."

"I've been sharing a cabin with DJ." Geoff said simply. "I know he's a good guy – probably the only guy in our cabin I'd actually recommend dating."

I didn't know if I believed that, but hey, I couldn't take it back now. So I headed back to our cabin, just as Heather ran out, screaming.

"What happened?" I asked the other girls.

Gwen had a little smirk on her face. "Somehow, Harold's red ant farm ended up in Heather's bed."

I giggled. "Great payback!"

**Yes, the wilderness challenge next! One of my favourites! Please review.**


	7. Chapter 7: Enough To Bear

**Let's set off for the outdoors! Thanks for reviewing, Madison Wooten and LimitedLegendFTW**

Our next challenge was simple, but horrible. Chris gave each team a map and compass and sent us off to spend one night in the woods, with the first team back the next morning being the winners. Everything we needed would be at the campsite we were sent to. Oh yeah, and Chris also warned us to watch out for bears.

"I had a little enounter with a bear once!" Owen boasted. "Let's just say his head looks real nice up on my mantle!"

"Oh, this one time, I saw a bear eating our garbage!" Izzy said. "He had spaghetti noodles hanging from his big huge teeth, and it looked like blood and guts, it was so gross! And we thought he was eating the neighbour's cat Simba but it turned out he was just lost for a week. Uh..." she looked at Lindsay, who was starting to look green. "You didn't eat spaghetti, did you?" Lindsay shook her head. "Good, let's go!"

Yeah, Izzy was pretty weird. This wasn't the first time she'd told a random story, and it was never easy to make sense of because she spoke so quickly.

The walk to our campsite was silent and cold. Gwen wouldn't talk to anyone, still humiliated about Heather reading out her diary to everyone. Heather herself was pissed about Gwen dumping Harold's red ant farm into her bed.

"You did read her diary out to the entire world." Trent pointed out.

Heather stopped and turned around. "So?"

"So that was pretty harsh." Trent told her.

"She is going down!" Heather snarled.

Look, I'd tried to be nice and get along with Heather, but that girl was seriously getting on my nerves. If there was one thing I hated, it was people who insulted my friends or my intelligence. Although I wasn't close with Gwen, if Heather did one more thing to her or anyone else on our team, she would get hurt.

We found the camp quickly, but then we had to find our own food. Owen volunteered to go and find it.

"Well, at least this will be a good week for my diet." Heather sighed.

It's true that Owen didn't come back for ages. The rest of us had to pitch our tent, which was pretty small for our ten people. Then in the afternoon, we set up a fire and just sat around, since we had nothing else to do.

At least when Owen arrived back, he didn't come back empty handed. I didn't like fish that much, but at least it was something. Heather wasn't too impressed, but the rest of us were.

"Oh, I love fish! I love fish!" Izzy exclaimed, biting into one. She frowned for a moment, and added "I guess we should cook it first, huh?"

"Remind me which one she bit into before I eat any of them." I muttered.

Once it got dark, we started cooking the fish.

"I'm bored." I said. "Let's play a game or something."

Heather made an unimpressed sound. "Like what?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Truth or Dare...anything..."

That offer fell flat, so Owen started telling us the story about how he and his grandpa killed a bear. Personally, I didn't believe it, but I said nothing.

Heather was another matter. "There is no way you took down a ten-foot bear." She looked around suddenly. "Hey, has anyone seen crazy girl?"

I cleared my throat, deliberately misunderstanding while answering her question. "I haven't seen anyone by that name, but _Izzy _disappeared off somewhere because she needed the bathroom."

"That was over an hour ago!" Trent pointed out.

All we got was...oh no, this really sucked. A freaking BEAR came out of the bushes.

"WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!" Owen screamed. "WE'RE GONNA GET EATEN ALIVE BY A BEAR! OH, THE HORROR! SOMEBODY HELP US, I WANT MY MOMMY!"

I glanced over at the rest of our team and saw a dark patch in Cody's jeans. Ew.

Heather tripped the screaming Owen to shut him up, and then said "The trees! Climb into the trees!"

We all scrambled for the nearest tree.

Half an hour later, the bear was still there, and we were stuck in the tree. Owen admitted that he hadn't actually killed a bear, and Heather was completely out of ideas after climbing the tree.

"This was all your fault!" she accused Owen. "If you hadn't been growling like that, we never would've attracted him to our site!"

"Excuse me for living!"

"It's more likely he was attracted to the fish!" I argued. "And we need that!"

"It's still his fault, isn't it?" Heather shot back. "We could've found wild fruit in the woods, but no, he had to go and find fish!"

"Hey, ease up on the guy." Trent defended.

That was the moment when the bear started sniffing at our fish. Well, Heather didn't seem too reluctant when she yelled at it to stay away from our food.

"It's probably already eaten Izzy!" Lindsay wailed.

"Then it shouldn't be hungry anymore!" Heather answered. We all stared at her cool answer. "What? This is survival of the fittest. She should've just gone in her pants like Cody."

Cody was on the highest branch, and he hung his head at that comment. I felt a bit sorry for him.

Suddenly, Leshawna's branch broke off, and the bear cornered her.

We all gasped. "Play dead!" I called down, but I don't think she heard me. The bear drew itself up to its full height, and...

"Hey, are you okay?"

Leshawna blinked. "Uh...did that bear just ask me a question?"

The bear reached up and pulled to reveal...Izzy in a bear costume.

I climbed down, knowing it was safe.

"Okay, I'm so confused right now." Lindsay said, frowning.

"What are you, some kind of weirdo?" Gwen asked.

"I thought it would be funny!" was Izzy's simple answer.

"Not while we're in the woods and bears are a real threat!" I said. "Didn't you think about that?"

"Well duh, it wouldn't be funny if you didn't think it was real!" Izzy giggled.

We ate our fish, which was absolutely fine, but...and this is so TV-show formulaic...a bear showed up. At first, we thought it was another joke, but this time, it was real. We spent the whole night in the tree, trying to sleep. And it started raining after that, too.

The bear had gone by morning, but the map was soggy. We'd have to retrace our steps without help.

The Killer Bass beat us to the campsite, which I pretty much expected.

"Not so fast, Gopherinos." Chris said happily. "It seems that the Killer Bass are missing a few fish."

"Oh, you mean Katie and Sadie?" Courtney said. I looked again and realized that the two girls were missing. "I'm pretty sure they got eaten by wolves last night." She said it so casually, I wasn't sure if she was serious.

"Darn shame." Duncan added.

Right on cue, the two girls ran out from the woods.

"We made it!" cried Katie.

"We're safe!" added Sadie. "Omigosh, guys, we got totally lost and then got in this massive fight!"

"And there was this huge bear," continued Katie, "And he was all 'rawr, you're in my crib so GET OUT'!"

"And we had to run and it was like so scary!"

"Oh, Sadie," Katie said, "I"m so sorry I said I was prettier than you!"

"And I'm so sorry I brought up the snack shack!" Sadie answered.

"And I'm sorry I said your butt was too big to fit in the bus seats."

"You did?"

"Um...well, not to your face."

The two girls were serious for a moment, but then, Sadie finally said "Oh, who cares? We're safe! And you're my best friend and I love you!"

"Aw, I love you too!"

"Are you two finished with your little love fest?" snapped Courtney. The girls nodded. "Good, because thanks to you, we just lost the challenge!"

Our team won an all-expenses paid trip to a tuck shop (well, it sold real food, even if it was all unhealthy), and we had fun, gorging on real stuff and then spending the day lazing around and hanging out in our hot tub.

I couldn't help but wonder who the Bass were sending home. I mean, it was obviously going to be Katie or Sadie, but who was the better player? The only thing I'd seen them do anything apart with was dodgeball. Okay, so Katie was clearly better at that, but how would that affect later challenges? Which girl made both of them get lost?

It didn't matter who it was, anyway. When we went to the campfire later that night, Sadie was on her own, clutching a piece of wood, sniffling.

**We'll continue it next time! I'm looking forward to the next challenge. What do you think Elle's fear will be? Hint: Elle is not good at endurance challenges, as shown by her performance during the Awake-A-Thon!**


	8. Chapter 8: Aphensmphobia, Courtney?

**Phobia Factor, let's do this! Thanks for reviewing, Madison Wooten and Ali6132.**

We'd gone to the campfire, because we got some extra dessert from our tuck shop spree and were feeling like we should offer it to the Bass.

"So what, you're just being nice now?" Courtney said suspiciously.

I folded my arms. "Why wouldn't we be nice? Courtney, seriously, it's not like you have to have anything. So we came here because we have to air out our cabin because of Owen and the effect junk food has on him, but that's it." I plopped myself down next to Sadie. "So I see you guys voted Katie off."

Beth offered the green jelly with the gummy worm to Courtney.

"No!" Courtney said, sounding worried for some reason. She quickly calmed down and said "I mean, no thanks, I'm good."

"What, are you on a diet or something?" Duncan asked her.

"No, I just don't like green jelly."

Beth took the jelly further, but before anyone could touch it, DJ screamed. "SNAKE!" He accidentally knocked the dish out of Beth's hands.

"Chill, dude." Cody said, pulling the worm out. "It's just a gummy worm."

"Sorry for tripping." DJ apologized. "Snakes just freak me out."

"I feel you." Tyler said. "Chickens give me the creeps, dude."

This set everyone off, and we started all sharing our fears. Believe it or not, no one had the same one at first, and no one really made fun of most of them.

Beth told us that she was scared of being covered by bugs, Harold was afraid of ninjas, Leshawna feared spiders, and Heather admitted that she was scared of sumo wrestlers.

"What's my worst fear..." Gwen mused, "I guess being buried alive."

"Walking through a minefield...in heels." Lindsay said. Wow, that was actually a good one. I thought hers might've been not being pretty any more...I know, that was mean, but it's not like I was going to say it to her face and hey, complimenting her fear was still a compliment.

"Flying, man." Owen said. "That's some crazy shit."

"I would never go up in a plane. Never!" Izzy added, clasping her hands.

"I'm scared of hail." Geoff told everyone else (I of course, already knew). "It's small, but deadly, dude."

"Being left alone in the woods." Bridgette said.

"Bad haircuts." Sadie sniffled.

"Okay, I change mine!" Lindsay said. "That's so much scarier than a minefield!" I'm losing some respect for her again...

"Blood tests." I admitted. I was okay with getting cut, but they jab the needle into the inside of the elbow, then leave the cold metal in for a while and you can actually see the blood filling the tube.

Cody looked like he was debating, but finally said "Having to defuse a time bomb under pressure."

"I'm not really afraid of anything." Courtney claimed.

"Baloney!" Duncan pretended to cough.

"Oh, really?" she said. "Well, what exactly is your phobia, Mr Know-It-All?"

There was a pause.

"C-Celine Dion music store standees."

_SERIOUSLY? _Did I just hear Duncan say that? I wasn't sure whether that was unexpected or a cliché. I mean, Duncan may not have been the strongest guy on the show, but he was definitely the toughest. Cardboard cut-outs were pretty much harmless.

Everyone else was surprised, too. "So if we had a cardboard standee right now..." Courtney teased.

"Shut up!" cried Duncan. "What about you guys?"

Trent was pretty much the only member of our team who hadn't said anything. "Well, I hate mimes," he said, "Like a lot." He looked at the only person who hadn't said it. "All right, Courtney, you're afraid of something."

"No, nothing!" Courtney insisted.

"That's not what she said last night." Duncan muttered. I couldn't help giggling. What had happened last night?

"Duncan, did you ever consider the fact that maybe I was just humouring you and your stupid story?" Courtney asked.

"Sure, sure, princess, whatever floats your boat."

Oh no, I had to ask now. The stuff they just said sounds incredibly suggestive.

"Um, Courtney?" I said. "Do you have aphensmphobia?".

Courtney stared at me, blushed bright red, and snapped "Of course not! Nothing happened last night!"

We should've guessed the challenge. Chris announced the next morning that we'd all be facing our worst fears. We didn't take him seriously, until he explained some of them.

"Now, for our first victims...Heather. Meet us all in the theatre. It's sumo time!"

Heather, who had taken a sip from her cup, immediately choked.

"Gwen." Chris called out. "You, me, the beach. A few tons of sand." Gwen gasped.

"Wait, how did they know those were your worst fears?" Lindsay asked.

"Because we told them."

I realized what they meant. "I can't believe it! Now the entire world knows what I'm scared of and the only one here with no problems with that is Courtney!" The last person in the world I'd want to have that advantage. She was smiling calmly.

Actually, Beth was the first to face her fear, getting our team a point. She dived into a kiddie pool full of worms. Okay, so they weren't really bugs, but she was covered in them. Some of them were even in her mouth, and we got a point.

Next, Chris put horrible wigs on Lindsay and Sadie. They'd win by wearing them for the whole day.

Chef was going to fly a battered plane with Izzy and Owen trapped inside, but first, I was made to sit down and hold out my arm, with my whole team watching. Yes, they were making Chef give me a blood test. And on top of that, I had to watch every grisly moment of it.

Okay, I didn't have to do any of this, but if I didn't, I wouldn't get the point. So I did it, fear prodding at me every minute to turn away, to scream, to stop, but I didn't. When Chef finally took out the needle and gave me a plaster, my team cheered.

I heard Harold was ambushed by ninjas while he was in the bathroom, and ended up knocking himself out.

Chef dressed up as a giant spider before he took Izzy and Owen for a flight, and Leshawna ran, screaming.

Heather ducked down, covering herself when the sumo wrestler came at her, he fell over her and she got us the point. Say what you like about Heather, she'll do whatever it takes to win.

Bridgette was sent off to spend six hours alone in the woods. Gwen lay in a glass box with enough air to last for an hour and a walkie-talkie. Trent had the other one, and planned to stay by Gwen for the five minutes she had to spend buried under the sand. "Just yell if you panic and I'll dig you right up." he assured her.

"Goodbye, cruel world." Gwen said dramatically as the little space in the glass box was sealed up and the sand was thrown on there.

Gwen was buried under there for two hours. This wasn't exactly Trent's fault, though. Chris sent a mime after him, so once he'd conquered his fear, he forgot all about Gwen until Chris made an electronic hail cloud follow Geoff everywhere, saying "I'm gonna bury him in hail!"

As for the Killer Bass, DJ managed to hold a snake, and Duncan hugged a Celine Dion standee. On our team, Cody failed to defuse his time bomb that covered him in garbage.

Sadie and Lindsay made it through the whole day with the wigs, but when a confused Cody wandered around the woods and found Bridgette, his appearance was enough to send her running back to camp. And Tyler couldn't stand two minutes in a chicken pen.

"Tyler, this is the last challenge!" Courtney yelled at him. "Quit being such a girl! You have to do this or we're going to lose!"

I shot a glare at Courtney. I rarely hated anyone, but Courtney was annoying. She'd yelled at DJ, too, but weirdly enough, she'd not only tried to make things easier for Duncan, but she'd hugged him after he finished his challenge. Now I was starting to wonder if they really had done something when they were in the woods.

But it wasn't the last challenge. Chris had reviewed the video of everyone talking about their fears, and Courtney had accidentally reacted to her fear.

"Is it what I thought it was?" I asked. "I knew it!"

"No, Elle, you couldn't have been more wrong!" Chris laughed.

Courtney's challenge was to jump into a pool of green jelly. Yes, that was her fear. Green. Jelly. And even though we were in the lead, Chris said that if Courtney did it, it would mean her team won, even though we had the lead and Courtney's challenge shouldn't have made any difference.

She climbed up the ladder to the diving board above and looked down fearfully.

"Like you said, Courtney, it's okay if you can't do it!" Duncan yelled up. Yeah, she'd actually said that to him.

"It is?" repeated Bridgette. "But we'll lose!"

Finally, Courtney climbed down the ladder, tears in her eyes. She couldn't do it, meaning our team won immunity.

I was pretty surprised when I talked to Geoff again that night and discovered Tyler had been voted off. "I thought for sure that it would be Courtney." I admitted. "After Chris offered triple points, she still blew it."

Geoff shrugged. "I dunno. Guess Tyler just got more votes."

I sighed. "While we're on the subject, just asking. What actually happened between Duncan and Courtney? They argued last night, and then they were being all supportive today."

Geoff grinned. "Well, okay, Courtney says she hates Duncan, but it's pretty obvious she doesn't. Nothing actually happened, but the other morning when we were in the woods, they were cuddled up together the next morning, and Duncan keeps saying that she's actually really into him."

I grinned back. "Speaking of being into people, how's things going with you and Bridge?"

"Well..." Geoff admitted, "I said something really stupid to her the other night, but I've got a plan to counteract that." He smirked a bit and said "And I'm guessing you want to know if I said anything to DJ. Because I haven't yet, but don't worry, I will."

**I had a lot of fun writing that, for some reason. Just to clear things up, Elle asks Courtney if she has a fear of intimacy. I found that whole "that's not what she said last night" line pretty suggestive, so I just had to make a big deal out of it. C'mon, everyone, please, review!**


	9. Chapter 9: Flirting, Rabbits and Canoes

**Let's canoe! Thanks for your review, Ali6132, Princess Jaquline Chess, and Madison Wooten.**

We had a free day, next, and it was fun to not have to worry about competing. Lindsay was missing Tyler, but she seemed happy enough hanging out with Heather and Beth. I actually did find some time to talk to DJ.

At the time, he was on his own on the edge of the woods with a rabbit.

"Hey, DJ." I said, flopping down next to him. "Where'd you find that little guy?"

"He's my pet." DJ explained. "I found him in the wilderness challenge. He's called Bunny."

I smiled, and gently stroked the rabbit. "Hi, Bunny." I looked back up. "Do you have another pet at home?"

"No." DJ sighed. "I've always wanted one, though. My Momma doesn't really want pets. But I love animals." He sighed again. "I don't usually have good luck with them, though."

"I don't really know how to connect with animals." I admitted. "I like them okay, but I know next to nothing about them. Geoff and I used to have a pet dog, but she died last year." I stroked Bunny again. "What do you mean, you don't have good luck with animals? Looks to me like this one likes you, otherwise he would've gone by now."

DJ smiled. "Yeah, true. But it's the first time." His face became serious again. "Most animals just don't seem to like me, that or I make some stupid mistake. My first job ever was at a pet shop. I got fired really early. Turns out fur and scales don't mix."

I couldn't help giggling a little. "Sorry. So, anyway, why'd you decide to sign up for this show? You don't seem like the life-risking type. No offence or anything, you just seem more sensible."

"None taken. Back when I was little, my family used to live in Jamaica. Momma and I miss it, even though I was only about four when we came to Canada. I want to win the money so we could move back there. How about you?"

"Well, Geoff signed up for it first." I explained. "I don't know why he wanted me to come on the show too, but he convinced me it would be fun."

"Well, you two seem real close." DJ said. "Even though you're on different teams."

"True." I smiled. "I don't know why, but we hardly ever have serious fights."

But the next day, it was back to challenges. This time, it was a canoe trip. We had to paddle to a place called Boney Island, then carry our canoes and trek through the jungle to the other side. After that, we had to build a fire – the biggest one won. Then the team that got back to Wawanakwa first won immunity.

"One more thing." Chris finished. "If you take anything off the island, you will be cursed forever!"

Then it was time to grab our canoes. Just as I was leaving, I heard Beth running up to Chris, asking "What'd I miss?"

"Canoes."

Since I was the last one there, I said "Beth, be my partner?"

"Okay!" Beth said with a smile.

As for the rest of our team, Cody had grabbed Gwen and Lindsay pulled Trent off, while Leshawna and Izzy were paired up, as were Heather and Owen. On the other team, Courtney and Bridgette were paired up. So were DJ and Geoff, and there was one group of three with Sadie, Harold and Duncan.

"So, you still in Heather's alliance?" I asked as we paddled.

"Of course!" Beth said happily. "And Lindsay's really nice too!"

"Lindsay is nice." I agreed. "But I get the feeling that Heather's taking advantage of you. Like saying she can borrow all your stuff without asking but you can't borrow her stuff."

Beth looked a bit downcast. "True. But I have no chance of getting to the final three without her."

I frowned. "How do you know that she'll even get to the final three herself? I tried to vote her off after she read Gwen's diary to everyone."

Beth didn't say any more, but I thought that might be because she was thinking over everything I'd said. Maybe she'd rethink being in the alliance? I hoped so. Beth was dorky, socially awkward and not that smart, but she seemed like a sweet girl. Lindsay's intelligence level made her a lost cause, but I was sure Beth might be able to stand up to Heather if she was prompted.

When we actually got to Boney Island, I wished I'd chosen a partner other than Beth. I wasn't that weak, but not strong either, and Beth seemed to be weaker than most of our team, too. We spent the whole time on the island running from fanged beavers and weird birds. We also had a little incident when Trent sank into quicksand, and Lindsay did too when she tried to save him. In the end, it was Cody who swung in on a vine and although he hit a tree, Trent managed to grab the vine and pull himself and Lindsay out.  
"Come on, the race isn't over yet!" called Izzy. "We still have to burn stuff." She sounded so excited about it, that I couldn't help but sigh and roll my eyes. There were some people that just made me do that.

We still got to the beach first, but the Killer Bass got there quickly too, and they got their fire started first, since Duncan had a lighter.

Geoff spent the whole time sitting down.

"Geoff, did you get a splinter again?" I called, rolling my eyes.

"It was pretty bad." Bridgette told me. "He can't even walk."

I rolled my eyes again. "Look, Bridge, he's a drama queen about injuries. As soon as you take the splinter out, he'll be back to normal, trust me."

"Elle, get back here, we're doing a challenge!" Heather yelled.

I ignored her. "Geoff, be honest, it's a splinter, isn't it?"

"How can you be so heartless, sis?" Geoff said in a mock hurt voice.

I laughed and said "You'll survive, right? Let's make a deal – if you're more hurt than getting a splinter, call in a favour from me whenever you want."

"Party dressing girl, quit sabotaging our team by helping them and get back here!" Heather yelled again.

I sighed and went back. "Heather, take a chill pill! I wasn't helping them with the challenge."

Geoff's injury was a splinter, but the rest of his team was taking it ridiculously seriously.

We won the fire-building challenge, due to Izzy's clay-and-sap fire starter. She warned us it would be big. Apparently she'd done some training at something. "Yeah, I got in some trouble there and like blew up a kitchen by accident, which is why the RCMP is like still all over my butt." she laughed. "I am so totally AWOL!"

The rest of our team just rolled their eyes. We didn't believe most of Izzy's stories.

Cody arranged to swap partners with Trent on the way back, so he'd go with Lindsay, and Trent would go with Gwen. Although I found Cody annoying, personally, I had to appreciate that gesture. That was sweet of him.

Even though Izzy won us the fire-starting challenge, she also cost us the challenge. See, Harold had thrown the Killer Bass' paddles on their fire, not thinking. It was Izzy who suggested they had someone swim behind the canoes and push them, and they won that way.

"You cost us the game!" Leshawna yelled at Izzy. "You are dead!"

"Right. Okay, you are so lucky that my license to kill is currently expired." Izzy replied, and I stepped up.

"Izzy, are you threatening her?" I demanded.

Izzy tilted her head to one side in thought, and then answered "No. If I still had a license to kill, I would be, though."

Was it any wonder that Izzy left that night? It wasn't that she was voted off, though.

Just as Chris was about to give the final marshmallow to Izzy or Lindsay, a helicopter flew down, shining a light on the campfire, and a voice from a speaker called "Izzy, we know you're down there! You are under arrest!"

I gasped.

"You mean all that trash you were talking was true?" Leshawna cried.

"No." Izzy said calmly. "Just the RCMP part. See ya." She stood up and shouted "YOU'LL NEVER GET ME ALIVE!" Then she hightailed it into the woods, laughing manically.

I talked to Geoff as usual, that night. "So did you talk to DJ like you said you would?" I asked. "I mean, since you guys paired up for the canoe trip and that?"

"Yeah." Geoff said. "Mostly DJ just gave me dating advice. I kind of...screwed up with making a move on Bridgette and he helped me out. But I did ask. He said he did really like you...like a lot. Then he asked if I was cool with it."

I smiled. "Thanks. Okay, that's all I needed to know about him. Anyway, so what did you say to Bridgette?"

"It wasn't what I said. I don't really want to explain it. If everyone else knew it was bad, you would too. Why don't I get to hear these things?"

I laughed. "I don't know. With me, you should know what a girl likes. I guess sisters don't count."

It was weird to go back to the cabin without Izzy being there. I could sleep safer, but I kind of missed her exuberance.

**I'm not doing too well at the moment. Can someone help me with Elle's personality? She moderates her life, but she's like Geoff in that she's nice to everyone, except to those she knows she can't like. She finds challenges fun. What can some of her flaws be? Please review!**


	10. Chapter 10: Beth FTW!

**So...paintball, huh? Let's go. Thanks for your review, Ali6132.**

The next day was free, too. I decided to ask Bridgette about the litlte gesture Geoff did.

"It was kind of sweet, when you think about it." she admitted. "It was just a really bad attempt at flirting." He'd left her this little loose change box in the shape of a heart with a picture of each of them pasted together.

"Has he tried to flirt with you with any stupid lines?" I asked eagerly. "He said something about it before the canoe challenge."

Bridgette grinned. "Yeah, he did. During the wilderness challenge, he said something about me pitching the tent like a guy. I mean, he meant I wasn't afraid to pull my weight and get down to it with everything, but seriously."

I giggled. "I told you he was bad at flirting! He meant that as a compliment, honest. Trust me, he'll probably try to compliment you another time and screw up again."

Bridgette giggled with me. "So," she said, "How about you and DJ? I saw you guys talking the other day."

I smiled. "Yeah, I think he's the sweetest guy on this island." I admitted. "Geoff said that he does like me a lot, but how am I supposed to bring that up?"

"Just try small things." Bridgette suggested. "Hang out with him, spending more and more time with him gradually. Maybe drop some hints that you like spending time with him, just say a few things. DJ's not stupid, if he likes you back, he'll probably pick up on it and say something."

"But he's kind of...shy." I said. "I don't know..."

"Look, DJ's scared of a lot of things," Bridgette said, "But he's not afraid of emotion, or showing it like a lot of guys. If you take it slowly, he will react. Trust me."

I smiled. "Thanks, Bridge. You're a great friend, you know that?"

But the day of the break felt very short, unlike the next one, which started with a long line to the bathroom. Heather spent ages in there, after making Lindsay and Beth warm up the shower for her. Seriously, who did that girl think she was? It meant that eight of us were waiting outside to use the bathroom. Eventually, Gwen and I just went in the woods, since Heather wasn't coming out any time soon.

The challenge was hunting deer with paintballs. As in, Shalf the campers would hunt and the other half would be the deer, and I was a deer. Yeah, I had three Killer Bass campers hunting me.

So the hunters I had to watch out for were Bridgette, Harold and Geoff. I never thought my brother would be assigned to hunt for me.

Us deer got a headstart. Along with me, there was Heather, Cody, Trent and Gwen.

"This may be the lamest thing I've ever done in my life." Gwen muttered. We all had to wear fake antlers, noses and tails as well as paintball glasses, so we all looked pretty dumb. Personally, I didn't mind so much.

"Aw, c'mon, it could be fun!" said Cody cheerfully. We all glared at him. As usual, he was annoying me, but for no reason at all. I couldn't resist a little jibe that was actually true.

"Cody, you'll probably get shot first." I said. "No offense, but you kind of look like a deer."

"None taken." Cody said, looking a bit nervous at our glares. "Catch you guys later!" He ran off.

Heather decided to just wait on a stump. "I'm going to wait for Lindsay and Beth and make them protect me for the whole game."

"And what if one of the Bass hunters finds you first?" I asked slyly.

"I'll hide, duh!" Heather snapped. "I'm not stupid, party slut."

"Hey, I thought you said you wouldn't call me that!" I snapped. "We went through this, my skirt is longer than your shorts, and I am not a slut."

"Oh, really?" Heather smirked. "If you're as into parties as you say, can you tell me truthfully that you haven't hooked up with at least one guy a week?"

"Yes, I can!" I only hooked up once a fortnight at the most. Once every three months at the least.

Since Gwen and Trent walked off together, I decided it was best to give them some alone time together, so I went off on my own and eventually came back across Heather, still on her stump.

Beth was giving Heather an open bag of chips, with Cody hovering nearby.

"There's like, eleven left!" Heather said, looking in the bag. She sniffed. "And they're barbecue! Go exchange them for dill pickle."

Beth looked like she was about to obey, then she saw me behind Heather. I shook my head, just a fraction.

"No." Beth said firmly. There was a pause.

"What did you just say?" Heather hissed dangerously.

Cody ran off. Aw, just when it was getting good.

"Take it back." Heather ordered.

"No!" Beth drew herself up to her full height (though that wasn't much).

"Take. It. Back."

"No! I'm tired of being your slave!" Beth snapped. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a challenge to complete." As she passed, Heather turned and saw me watching.

I smiled and waved. "Uh...hi, Heather. Beth, I'd tell you you can shoot me, but since you're a Gopher, you'd be better off looking for one of the Bass deer."

Beth smiled at me. "That's okay, Elle. I can win this challenge in my own way."

I fell into step beside her anyway. "By the way, fantastic job for standing up to Heather! I knew you'd do it."

"It felt so amazing to say all those things to her!" Beth grinned.

Actually, we did find Sadie together. But it was ruined when we heard a voice call "Hey, Beth!" Sadie turned around, gasped, and ran.

"Thanks a lot, Heather!" I snapped. "Beth was about to shoot Sadie, and you ruined it."  
"I totally had her!" Beth complained.

Lindsay was by Heather's side, as usual. Apparently, Heather was trying to ask Beth back into the alliance, if she took back the "no".

"We've been talking about you." Heather said.

"We have?" Lindsay asked.

"Zip it, Lindsiot."

I couldn't keep my mouth shut with that. "Heather, just stop! Lindsay, why haven't you ditched her? She basically just called you an idiot."

"Lindsay knows I don't mean anything by it." Heather said brightly, before trying to get Beth back to her side.

"I don't want to take it back!" Beth said firmly.

"You are NOTHING without me!" Heather snapped.

"Do you know why we keep losing challenges?"

"Because they're lame and stupid?"

"No, because you're so busy being mean that you don't even try! All you can think of is bossing us around!"

Heather and Lindsay gasped. I burst out laughing.

"It's been fun," I said, "But I better run in case the hunters hear us. Beth, she's already been shot a few times. It wouldn't hurt for you to shoot her." Then I ran off.

When Chris finally called us back, Leshawna, Heather, Lindsay and Beth all had multicoloured paint stains all over them, meaning we lost the challenge. Everyone else was unscathed.

"Hey, where are Duncan and Courtney?" Harold asked.

Right on cue, the two of them walked up, their antlers tangled. I burst out laughing, remembering the whole thing I'd heard about with Duncan claiming Courtney liked him.

"Oh, this is too much." Gwen said with a grin.

"Duncan, you sly dog, you!" Owen exclaimed.

"The girl can't keep her antlers off me!" was Duncan's reply. Courtney reacted by kicking him in the kiwis.

"Easy, Courtney." Chris reprimanded. "Our medical tent's really only equipped for one at a time and Cody's pretty messed up."  
"Cody?" I rushed into the medical tent, to be met with a human mummy. Only Cody's blue eyes were visible. It turned out he'd been mauled by a bear. He was a lot less annoying when paralyzed and silent, but let's be honest, I'm not that cruel. That night, I voted him off purely because he could get better medical help almost anywhere other than Wawanakwa. Otherwise, I would've voted Heather off, especially since I knew she and Lindsay were voting off Beth, who deserved to leave the least.

Chris gave us our usual speech about the marshmallows. "The camper-"

"Who does not receive a marshmallow must immediately return to the Dock of Shame, catch the Boat of Losers and leave." Gwen recited superfast. "Can't we just get this over with?"

As it was, I think we all voted for the same person apart from Heather and Lindsay. We all voted Cody off, and Beth offered to take his wheelchair to the Dock of Shame, and then returned to the cabin with the rest of us.

After Beth stood up to Heather, she became one of my good friends on the show. The girls' cabin was very much an Us vs Them battlefield. "Us" was myself, Gwen, Leshawna and Beth, while "Them" was Heather and Lindsay. It was times like these when I wished sincerely that I was on the Killer Bass, even if I had to deal with Courtney. I was sure she, Sadie and Bridgette weren't split into teams – in fact, she and Bridgette were pretty much friends.

**Well, there's the paintball episode. Now to get to another good one. Please review!**


	11. Chapter 11: Heather's Hunger (For Power)

**So I recently learned to cook one of the most easy things ever, but if you asked, I could probably do something more. Elle...well, she can cook. Some things. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132.**

We had another challenge the day after the paintball challenge, and boy was it a changeover. Each team spent the whole day in the kitchen, making a themed three-course meal, which we would serve to Chris. We each had to pick a head chef, who would choose the theme and oversee the cooking. Well, at least, we were supposed to be choosing the head chef as a team.

"Head chef, called it!" Heather said, the first chance she got. No one argued with her, probably because it wasn't worth it. "Try not to screw up this time." she added to Beth.

"Just ignore her, girl." Leshawna muttered to Beth. I smiled at Beth as I passed by.

Heather's choice of theme was basically Hawaiian, or at least tropical.

I really envied the Killer Bass, yet again. They chose Geoff as head chef, plus their theme was Italian and sounded more simple. Plus it sounded like it would taste better. Besides that, Geoff was nothing like Heather as a leader, and kept things chilled. Bridgette and DJ volunteered themselves for the main, Harold volunteered himself and Sadie for the appetizers, and Courtney had to be persuaded a little bit before she agreed to work on the dessert with Duncan.

Meanwhile, on our team, Heather just told us what we were working on, instead of trusting us to know our strengths and choose.

"Lindsay, Gwen, you're on the citrus-mango upside-down cake flambe." Heather ordered. At that moment, Owen spilled a bunch of oranges, and Heather ordered him to go back and get more. "Trent, you and Owen are on ribs. Leshawna, Beth and Elle, you're on pineapple skewers and mango dip."

I folded my arms. "Excuse me, but how come there's three of us on it?"

"Because it'll take the longest." Heather said, as if it was obvious. "Besides, I doubt even you can screw up on something that simple. I have to be careful about who does each job."

Oh, now it was on. I was ready to prove that being in "nice girl" territory didn't mean I wasn't able to send Heather flying, but Leshawna put a hand on my shoulder, as if telling me to ignore the insult, and said "Girl, let me handle the appetizers." Her idea sounded a lot more complicated but more sophisticated than skewers, but Miss Head Chef wasn't going to listen to anyone else.

Owen took ages to get back with the oranges, but he was covered in bee stings when he did get back with a crate of them. "Trent, heads up!" he called, flinging the crate at him.

Trent had a concussion and had to be sent to the medical tent for the next couple of days after that, but we had to keep working.

Beth and I were chopping pineapples when Heather decided to complain about Beth's. "These slices are totally uneven. Trade places with Leshawna." She looked over my shoulder too, but didn't say anything.

"What are you talking about?" Leshawna asked. "They look fine to me."

"I didn't get to be head chef because of poor presentation!" Heather argued.

"No, you got to be head chef because you called it! And who do you think you're fooling with this crispy white apron power trip you on?"

"Are you gonna be a team player, or not?"  
"Oh, I'm a team player all right, but I'm also allergic to pineapples!"

The other team was staring at us by this time, so it looked like it was my turn to play peacemaker. "Guys, look, I'll do all the chopping!" I said loudly enough for them to stop yelling.

Heather glared at me. "Don't be stupid, you'll never get it finished on time. Leshawna, get slicing! Now!"

Leshawna pretty much stabbed the board as she cut, and soon she had hives all over her hands. And Heather didn't even care.

It was only after Heather lit the flambe (because Lindsay didn't realize it had to be lit) that we had a chance to take revenge. Because Lindsay had used all of the liquid for it, the fire practically singed off Heather's eyebrows.

"Owen, go get my makeup bag from the cabin." she ordered.

"But...the bees..." Owen protested.

"Now!"

I got a bit of a smirk as an idea formed in my head. I whispered it to Leshawna, who grinned. "Girl, you have a seriously evil side."

I shrugged. "It's not like it'll kill her, and I bet we'll work better without Heather yelling at us every second."

Leshawna passed on the idea to Beth, so by the time Owen got back, we were ready. He'd been stung even more, poor guy, but he had Heather's makeup bag in hand.

"Don't just stand there, give it!" the dark-haired girl ordered. The bag nearly fell out of Owen's hands, but Leshawna caught it first. "Elle!" she called, throwing it to me. Heather tried to grab it, but I threw it to Beth. She threw it to Lindsay, who looked at a loss as to what to do.

I nodded to Leshawna, who opened the fridge door and called to Lindsay to throw it in. She looked at Heather, then at the fridge. Finally, she smiled and threw it in. Once Heather had followed it, we closed the door on her, locking her in.

"Hey, you can't do this, I'm head chef!" we could hear her yelling from inside.

"Do you think Heather's really mad at us?" Lindsay asked worriedly.

"I WILL DESTROY YOU!" Heather snarled.

"She'll get over it." Leshawna said casually.

"She needs to learn to chill." I added, and the two of us high-fived.

"Thanks for helping, Lindsay." I added. "Maybe you should work with us more instead of being in Heather's alliance." But my hopes were dashed when Lindsay shook her head firmly.

Beth made sure our side of the table was decorated nicely for the Hawaiian style meal, while I went to the confessional. "I can't believe I actually came up with the idea to lock Heather in the fridge! I know she'll be furious when we let her out, but seriously, couldn't she have let us pick head chef? Someone like...I don't know...just someone less bossy." I sighed. "I wish I was a Killer Bass sometimes. Of course, I probably wouldn't have friends as awesome as Leshawna and Gwen, but apart from Courtney, they feel more like a true team."

Our meals looked great, from the skewers to the flambe. But we made one big mistake – while we got Chris the appetizers (which he liked), we let Owen guard the food. By the time Chris was ready for the main, there was only a tiny piece of meat left on the ribs, and we were very lucky to get any marks for it at all.

But with the flambe, we just needed ten points to win. Chris had loved the Killer Bass' antipasto and pasta, but he wasn't too impressed with their custard pastries. As we served our cake, he even said it looked like a winner.  
But the minute he jammed his fork into it, our beautiful cake, it shrivelled up and became ash.

"Ooh, that's not good." murmured Leshawna.

Chris tried one bite, and choked. "What the heck is this?" he demanded.

"It's Heather's recipe!" Lindsay said. But then she gasped. "Omigosh, she's still in the fridge!"

So the Bass won, and were rewarded with a gourmet meal under the stars, while our team were most likely getting nothing but a few leftovers and a marshmallow for our trouble.

Heather had gone blue by the time Lindsay let her out of the fridge. "You guys are s-s-so dead!" she managed, her teeth chattering. She was furious when she found out we'd lost. "Great! That's just great. Why do we keep losing, people?" She stalked over to the table, inspecting a little statue Beth had put as decoration. "And what is this? I didn't approve this!"

"I brought it back as a souvenir," Beth said, "You know, from the other island."

We all gasped. I'd forgotten that Beth had missed Chris' warning about not taking anything from Boney Island. And come to think of it, we'd lost every challenge since then. Did that mean...Beth cursed our team?

"I didn't know! I'll put it back!" she said, looking distressed.

We discussed who to boot this week. "I don't know about y'all, but Heather has got to go." Leshawna said firmly. I nodded.

"Yeah, but Beth cursed us with that wooden tiki doll thingy!" Owen pointed out.

"True." Leshawna admitted. She put her hands together like she was praying. "Dear curse, _please _hit Heather next. And if possible, hit her upside the head."

I giggled. "Well, my vote's decided."

I was about to go into the cabin, when I stopped, hearing Heather saying to Lindsay "I could convince the team to vote you off tonight. You were a major traitor." I rolled my eyes. There was no way I'd vote off Lindsay before Heather. I waited outside, wanting to hear this, but knowing Heather would stop talking if I came in.

"But," Heather continued, "You did let me out of the fridge, so I'll give you one more chance if you vote with me tonight." There was a pause, in which I assumed Lindsay nodded. "There! See? All better. Oh," Heather added, "And if you ever team up with Leshawna and Elle against me again, I'll cut off all your hair while you're sleeping!" I opened the door just enough to see Lindsay touching her blonde hair and holding her blue bandanna over it, looking scared out of her mind.

I went back to the confessional. "Note to self: Hide all the scissors and knives on the island, then give Lindsay the all-clear to ditch Heather."

As you can guess, I voted for Heather that night. I didn't believe in all that curse stuff. Boney Island was pretty scary, but no way did one little tiki doll help the RMPC find Izzy (more likely that was the fire before we left), or get Cody mauled by a bear, or make Owen eat most of the ribs and cause our flambe to be a complete disaster.

As it turned out, most of our team was more superstitious than I was. Beth was voted off, much to Heather's pleasure. "You heard him. Boat of Losers, that-a-way. That really was stupid of you to take that doll from the island."

"Bye, Beth." I said. "I'll miss you."

"See you, girl." Leshawna said as the shorter girl passed us, eyes downcast.

We had another challenge the next day, but the thing was, there was a note on our door that night. I didn't recognize the handwriting, but it said: "_Girls – Go down to the beach at seven tomorrow morning."_

I showed the other girls the note. "I don't know who wrote it. I think it's for all of us." Regardless, all of us went for a swim the next morning (Bridgette, Courtney and Sadie too), only to find a bunk on the beach.

Harold's bunk had been placed there. The other boys on his team were sitting in a canoe, grinning as he woke up, realized he was on the beach with no clothes and all of us staring at him, and covered himself with a pillow. So we'd just been called here for a prank?

"Good morning, Harold!" Leshawna and Courtney both called out.

It turned out that the boys on the Killer Bass had lost patience with Harold, because he kept leaving his stuff all over their cabin and refused to admit it was him when it was obvious. He promised he'd never do it again, and that was an end to that conflict. And...in case you're wondering...he was the size of a couple of dice. I doubt the first girl he screwed would even know it was happening, much less that it would be able to get in deep enough.

**Sorry about the gutter comment. But seriously, look at the blurred area. Harold is NOT attractive. But then again, he's not my type. Which TDI character is your type? Screw it, which TD character from ANY season is your type? Personally, mine's probably a mix of Trent (creativity and sensitivity) and Alejandro (looks and charm). Please review!**


	12. Chapter 12: In Elle We Trust

**Do you trust that this chapter will be okay? I trust that you will read and review this chapter. Thanks for your reviews, Ali6132 and EvilAngel666.**

After that unexciting study of the male anatomy, we all had to go and get breakfast. It was just leftovers from the last challenge, but hey, it was better than what we usually got from Chef.

Heather had caught cold from her time stuck in the fridge, and it didn't look like she was going to get over it any time soon. "I am going to make you sorry you ever met me."

"Too late." Gwen said, exchanging grins with Leshawna and I

The challenge (or challenges) for today instantly made me worry when they were announced.. Chris was making us do trust building exercises. "Yesterday's challenge exposed a few Gopher issues, and I'm sensing a little something funky floating in the Bass pond too."

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Duncan nudging Courtney. She gave him such a powerful shove he fell over.

"Little problem." I said. "If I trust the wrong people, they'll kill me in these challenges." I trusted most of my teammates. In fact, I trusted quite a few of the Bass, too – not Courtney (that goody-goody mask can _not _be real), or Duncan for that matter (he's fun and all, but he must've done something to end up in juvie), but pretty much all the others. Heather was the only one of my teammates I had any problem with at all.

"That's exactly what I'm talking about, Elle!" Chris said brightly. "You have to learn to trust your team."

At that moment, I realized how cynical my comment had been. It was weird. I think the island was changing me a bit...or was it my friends? At home, my friends called me "the social butterfly" because I got along with almost everyone and was instantly friendly to most people. Those I didn't like, I didn't think about or talk about. Sure, I could be cynical about things, rolling my eyes at Izzy's stories and asking Courtney if she was scared of intimacy (Geoff used to call me "acidic sweetness" due to being "sweet on the outside, cynical on the inside"), but that was the first time I'd really said anything that mean, and the idea to lock Heather in the fridge was something I'd never think about doing at home. Then again, I'd never met anyone like Heather. Maybe sharing a cabin with her was making me crazy.

Each challenge would be done by two members of each team. But this time, Chris decided to pick who would partner up with who.

The first challenge wasn't one I had to do. It was a freehand rock climbing challenge. Chris paired up Duncan and DJ, and Gwen and Heather. Basically, all the non-climber had to do was hold on to their rope so the climber wouldn't fall if they let go, and harness the climber, of course.

Oh yeah, and the climber would have to avoid the nails, explosives and other things Chris had put on the rocks to make things harder for them.

Gwen asked if she could switch partners, but Heather replied that she was safe. "I'm not gonna throw a challenge just to kill you. Yet."

So on our team, Gwen would climb. On the other team, DJ would (he got Geoff to look after Bunny while he was climbing).

Heather harnessed Gwen up, seemingly serious about the whole thing.

"What's the extra rope for?" Gwen asked.

"It's a back-up line." Heather said.

Gwen narrowed her eyes. "What are you smiling about?"

"Nothing." Heather said sweetly. "I'm just really happy we got on this challenge together."

I didn't trust her, so I decided to stand close, just in case she did try to let go of the rope. As it was, she did at one point, but that was because Chris distracted her by squirting hot sauce at her, and Gwen survived.

However, what Heather did do was pull the extra line. She'd promised to make us sorry we'd met her.

However, there was no reason for her to make up some stuff about a back-up line just so she could pull it to rip Gwen's skirt off in the process. Yes, you heard me. The rope was there to pull Gwen's skirt off.

"Well," Duncan remarked, taking off his sunglasses, "You don't see that every day." I grimaced.

But she kept going, and won the first challenge for us.

Next, most of us took a break while the next challenge took place. For our team, Lindsay and Trent got paired up, while for the Bass, Bridgette and Geoff were teamed up.

I decided to hang out with DJ again for a bit. "So, sucks that you lost the last challenge. Personally, I can't believe Gwen still won it after Heather ripped her skirt."

DJ shrugged. "Win some, lose some. 'Least I survived."

We mostly didn't really talk about important stuff. Just random kind of things. "So...were you involved in pranking Harold yesterday?" I asked.

"It was Duncan's idea." DJ answered. "We all had a hand in it, so yeah, I guess I was involved. I don't do that stuff regularly or anything. I reckon Harold's suffered enough, now." It wasn't just leaving Harold's bunk outside. The boys had also taken most of his clothes after breakfast and purposely spilled water on him so he had nothing dry to wear. He'd ended up wearing his pyjamas.

"Somehow, it doesn't surprise me that Duncan thought of it." I grinned. "I know you're not the type to do it all the time, and while Geoff does do stupid stuff a lot, someone else usually has the idea when it involves a victim."

Trent had to go back to the medical tent after the challenge. It turned out the challenge had been one person making fugu for the other. Geoff had let Bridgette make it, and it was absolutely fine. Lindsay, on the other hand, sliced the blowfish a bit more carelessly, and it was a miracle that Trent survived eating the toxic organs. That was one win for us, and one for the Bass.

The last three challenges were all blind ones. First, one person would have an arrow on their head, and the blindfolded person would try to knock the arrow off with apples, like reversing William Tell.

This time, the partners were Leshawna and Owen for our team, and Courtney and Sadie for the other team.

We won, but Sadie continued shooting several times after we'd won.

"Sadie, it's over, man!" Chris yelled at her. "Let it go!"

Sadie took off her blindfold. "Oopsie! Sorry!"

"You're going down..." Courtney managed before falling unconscious. She was taken to the medical tent.

The next challenge was one I had to compete in, since I was the only Gopher left who hadn't competed. I had to stand on a ledge, while Lindsay swung on a trapeze. She would tell me when to jump, and then catch me before I fell into the jellyfish pond below.

"Okay!" I heard Lindsay calling. "One...two...three...jump! No, no, not yet!"

I only just managed to stop myself from jumping when she called out no. "When, then?" I called. "Don't count, just say 'now' when it's safe!"

"Now!"

I jumped, and scrabbled in thin air, only just able to grab Lindsay's hands. But they slipped from my grasp, and I fell into the jellyfish pond, so the Bass won that one again.

I should mention here that something happened to Bunny while Geoff was looking after him. I didn't know what, but Geoff told DJ that Bunny "hopped away". Of course, I knew something else had happened, but I didn't say so, because DJ was upset enough.

Why do I mention this? Because I was sent to the medical tent with Courtney. She was still unconscious when I first got there, but we both saw something very interesting.

We saw Duncan holding a carrot and walking away, with a rabbit following him.

"What's Duncan doing with a rabbit?" Courtney muttered to herself.

I shrugged. "Geoff lost DJ's rabbit. Maybe Duncan's going to replace it." Then I laughed. "Nah, probably not. I can't see that happening, but what else would he do with it?"

Courtney shrugged. "Who knows what he's up to?"

As it was, during the toboggan blind challenge, it turned out I was right. The last challenge had a blindfolded driver and a passenger calling out directions. Leshawna and DJ drove, while Gwen and Geoff directed.

That was the problem. DJ was still very depressed about losing Bunny. But that all changed. While Gwen and Leshawna kind of went off track, DJ was barely doing a thing.

"Hey, DJ! Look who I found!" Duncan yelled out. In his hands was the rabbit he'd been luring out of the woods earlier. Maybe it was Bunny, maybe it was a second rabbit. But it looked like Bunny, and that's what mattered.

So DJ took off his blindfold for one minute, saw the rabbit, and then put the blindfold back on and won.

Except, because he took the blindfold off, we won the overall challenge.

I went up to Duncan afterwards. "I never thought I'd see the day. Finding a Bunny replacement for DJ? That's pretty amazing for a guy like you."

Duncan sighed when I said it. "Seriously? First Courtney saw me do it, and now you?"

I grinned. "We were both in the medical tent, so we saw everything. Look, if you don't want me to tell anyone, I won't. You don't have to threaten me. Although I'd like to know what Courtney said when she talked to you."

Duncan shrugged. "For some reason, she thinks I'm nice, now. I don't know. And you better not tell anyone!" he added fiercely.

I shrugged. "I said, don't threaten me. I can keep a secret."

That night, Sadie was voted off. I was sitting on the dock as she walked pastl, tears in her eyes, so I saw the boat of losers arrive, and a voice squeal "Eeee! Oh, yay!"

Sadie looked up, and started squealing too. This was a first. The Boat of Losers was usually empty. But for Sadie, the Boat of Losers was the first step to a joyful reunion with her best friend. Yes, _Katie _was on the boat!

I watched as Sadie ran up to the boat, jumped in, and hugged Katie as the boat sped away.

I was glad the next day was a break. We had one more week until the halfway point of the competition – four weeks. Wow, the first three had gone quickly. We'd had ten eliminations so far, so I guessed that we'd have two more before the end of the week, which probably meant at least one challenge lasting longer than one day, but also at least one break.

I talked to Bridgette a bit more. "So...how are things with Geoff?" I asked eagerly. In spite of it being my brother, I liked hearing about him as just this guy with a crush.

"Well, he did say something pretty dumb during the cooking challenge." Bridgette said. "Something about looking like his friend's mom. But we went for a swim after the trust challenge with the blowfish sashimi, and things were really cool. As long as things stay how they were then..." she let her voice trail off.

I giggled. "What he said was a compliment. He has this one friend, and according to him, his mom looks like a model. Unfortunately, context isn't exactly Geoff's strong point."

Bridgette laughed. "Well, I understand it a bit better, then. Still. Anyway, enough about my love life, what about you and DJ?"

I sighed. "I don't know. We're friends, and I heard he does like me, but neither of us have said anything."

Bridgette smiled kindly. "Elle, do you want me to say anything to him?"

"Like...what would you say?" I asked.  
"I"m not going to say anything embarrassing." she assured me. "I'll just talk to him, mention you just really casually, and if I can get it out of him that he likes you in that way, I'll try to encourage him to make a move."

I smiled. "You do not know how much I appreciate this."

"Hey, you're helping me understand where Geoff's going with everything he says. I'm just returning the favour."

But the next day began the next challenge, which lasted three days, and it was going to be a nightmare.

**Basic Straining next! Please review!**


	13. Chapter 13: Basically Strained

**Let's go! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132, The Girl who is FandomStruck and PurpleBubble14.**

The next day, Chef called us to the dock via intercom, and we had to stand to attention there, side by side. Chef hit us with a cane if we weren't standing how he wanted. "Feet together! Arms down! Face forward! Head up!" He hit Harold for pretty much no reason at all.

"Oh, this is going to be a fun day." I heard Gwen muttering to Trent, who had fully recovered from the poisonous fugu.

"What did you say to me, soldier?" Chef bellowed at Gwen.  
"Uh...nothing."

"And you will continue to say nothing until I tell you that you can say something!"

Yes, Chef was taking our challenge, and it was going to be a boot camp. We had to address him as Master Chief, and do everything he said. When we wanted to drop out, we would ring the bell stationed at the end of the dock. No day would end until someone dropped out. The last camper left won immunity for their team.

Our first challenge was to hold up a canoe as a team until someone dropped out. We all thought it would be easy, but were we ever wrong!

Three hours later, no one had dropped out, but things were awful. We missed lunch, and the canoes just felt heavier and heavier as the day grew hotter and hotter. It wasn't until the evening that someone dropped out.

I was literally on the verge of being the first to drop out when Lindsay whimpered "Guys, I can't do this anymore. I have no feeling in my arms!" She went and rang the bell.

"Listen here," Chef told her, "You have nothing to be ashamed of...EXCEPT BEING A LITTLE BABY WHO LET YOUR TEAM DOWN!"

But at least Lindsay's elimination meant that we could finally ditch the canoes. We finally got to head up to the mess hall for dinner.

Except the dinner was just garbage from this morning's breakfast. "When you have war," Chef told us, "You take what you can get."

We had ten minutes to eat before night training started. I witnessed Duncan playing another prank on Harold, with Geoff laughing too.

While Courtney started calling Duncan immature and he started goading her about liking him, I glared at Geoff. "Why are you guys still pranking Harold?" I asked. "Hasn't he suffered enough? He promised never to leave his stuff out any more."

Geoff shrugged. "Yeah, he did, but he's still doing it. Besides, he just makes it so easy. And you have to admit, they're funny."  
I smiled. "Yeah, true." But then I frowned again. "But it's still mean. Playing them once in a while was okay, and I know you don't go that far with them, but I know for a fact the pranks were all Duncan's idea. Would it kill him to leave Harold alone for a while? Every dork has his day, and Duncan will not have fun when that day comes. And due to that, could _you_ leave Harold alone, at least?"

Geoff shrugged. "Okay, whatever."

Just as he said that, Duncan was denying being nice when Courtney mentioned she'd thought that for a moment, so Geoff turned to ask her "Why'd you think that?"

"Never mind, I was wrong." Courtney scowled. "He's just as gross and annoying as he wants you to believe. Enjoy your _garbage." _She and Heather had refused to eat anything.

The night training turned out to be copying Chef dancing to the music from _Thriller. _No, seriously. I considered myself an okay dancer, but not with steps – just so I didn't look dumb at all the parties I attended.

Duncan eventually turned the music off himself. Then we went back to the mess hall to write a three-hundred word essay about how much we "loved" Chef. "Anyone who doesn't finish or falls asleep will be eliminated."

Trent, DJ and I all fell asleep. To my credit, Trent was fast asleep long before me, but I fell asleep at around 250 words, and was woken up by Chef's fist smashing into the Gopher table. "You three slackers are out! The rest of you, get to bed, and report to the playing field at 0500 hours!" DJ was the third person out.

I was actually pretty relieved to be out, but to not be the first out. As I said to Trent as we walked to the Gopher cabins, "At least I can have more than two hours of sleep."

"Considering that we both fell asleep during that essay writing, I'd say we needed it." he teased.

I grinned back. "At least you were in the final three during the Awake-A-Thon." It was true. He'd stayed up talking to Gwen for hours, but fell before Gwen and Duncan.

The next evening, we finally caught a break, whether we were still in or out. Gopher or Bass, we all went into one cabin and got some real food, stuff that Courtney and Duncan had taken from Chef's fridge that was usually only reserved for him and Chris.

I was super surprised to hear goody-goody Courtney had done something like that, but then, she was much better company than usual, acting all hyper and cheerful.

Gopher and Bass alike were talking.

"I think I have jungle rot from that obstacle course." Owen said, looking at his foot as he referred to something I'd been lucky enough to miss out on.

"Eew, Owen, we're eating here!" squealed Lindsay.

"And what was with all those lame war stories?" Gwen laughed. "He is so demented!"

"I know, right?" I said. "They didn't even make sense!"

"Girl, these nails were not meant for combat training, know what I'm saying?" added Leshawna.

"Seriously," said Bridgette, "If I wanted to join the army, I would have."

Courtney grabbed the last ice cream sandwich, but Bridgette tried to take it, saying "Okay, I think you've had enough." She'd had about five already.

Courtney giggled and said "Oh, no, no – just – just one more!" She ate it in one bite, and then groaned. "Oh...yeah...yeah, that one was a mistake." She ran outside, and I heard her being sick.

Duncan followed her out and I heard him saying "So the Princess has a dark side."

I decided to keep eavesdropping. "Okay, that was so gross." murmured Courtney. "But it was like, once I did something bad, it was so much fun I just wanted more!"

"Well, you could always give me that kiss." Duncan suggested. "That'd be pretty bad."

"You're still not my type." Courtney laughed at him, although she ran one hand through Duncan's mohawk as she spoke.

"Fine. Enjoy a peanut butterless life." By this time, both of them had their backs to each other.

"Thanks. Enjoy prison."

"I will."

The next moment, something happened that no one expected, except for those who had heard Duncan say that Courtney liked him. He kept saying it, over and over, probably not only trying to make those around him believe it, but to make Courtney herself realize it. I had never liked the prep, but I felt genuinely happy for her after what I witnessed.

Courtney turned around, took Duncan's face in her hands, and kissed him on the lips. When they broke apart, they both had soft smiles on their faces.

Finally, Chef called over the intercom that the six final competitors would do their last challenge at seven the next morning. Right now, the only ones on our team who hadn't dropped out were Gwen, Heather and Owen. On the other team, Courtney and Duncan were both still in, as was Geoff. "And if I catch the sucker who took my desserts, your butt is mine!"

"Are you up for it, Gwen?" I asked that night, looking down at my bunkmate from my own bed.

"Of course!" Gwen said confidently.

As it was, she did win the challenge for us. The last six campers had to hang by their knees from a tree, letting the blood rush to their head. Chef described very graphically how awful they were probably feeling.

Duncan was the first to fall. Then Heather decided she was done and jumped down, followed by Owen falling on her, making me laugh. Hey, don't blame me. I may have defended Harold earlier, but Heather was just asking for it at times.

Courtney began giggling hysterically for no reason, and fell as a result.

"I expected more out of you, soldier." Chef told her.

"Master Chief, I just have one thing to say to you." Courtney replied.

"And what might that be?"

"You really need to take a chill pill!" Courtney burst out laughing, and so did I. I liked this new Courtney.

Geoff ended up being the last to fall, leaving Gwen as the winner.

I don't know who was going to go next. Much as I hated it, I thought DJ might be the obvious choice. I didn't know why.

But I was legitimately surprised when I talked to Geoff that night and he told me that in spite of knowing that at least three of them hadn't voted accordingly, Courtney had been the one left without a marshmallow and she was on the Boat of Losers at that moment. Now I thought of it, I thought I'd heard faint yelling earlier that night. Evidently, Courtney hadn't gone down without a fight.

"So someone must've rigged the votes?" I said.

"Must've." Geoff said. "I don't know who, though. Not everyone really likes Courtney, but no one hates her enough to kick her off that I know of."

I thought about it. "What if the person was trying to not get to Courtney, but to Duncan?" I suggested. "I saw them kiss, and I kind of assumed that they're together now."

Geoff grinned. "Yeah, Duncan carved this little skull that he gave Courtney just before she left. She told him that she loved it and that she'd never forget him."

I sighed. "And she had to leave just when I was starting to like her, too."

**Next will be a break. Anyone else have a huge down on Harold after this episode? I'm over it now, but for a long time, I was furious at Harold for kicking off Courtney. She'd come close to elimination twice already, but at least it was fair those times. Please review!**


	14. Chapter 14: Extremely Romantic

**Right. Extreme sports. Which I hate. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132, Princess Jaquline Chess and DarkQueenOfWonderland.**

We had another day's break, and this was the best break I'd had yet.

It started off like any other day. I ate breakfast with my team, chatting with Gwen and Leshawna, ignoring the death glares Heather shot us every now and then while Lindsay chattered away to her. Then I hung out with Bridgette for awhile, talking girl talk and wondering how Courtney got voted off (Bridgette hadn't voted for her, either, and she was now the only girl left on her team).

"If you ever need a girl to talk to, just come straight to me." I told her.

Bridgette smiled. "I know, Elle."

That's when it got interesting. Bridgette told me she'd talked to DJ like she'd offered to do earlier. "I did bring you up, and he did say you were really nice and totally his type – he even said he meant sweet and honest, but also assertive at times, not too quiet. Anyway, I told him that next time you talk to him, to just do something small and see how you react. Just try talking to him today."

I grinned. "Thanks, Bridge."

So I did talk to DJ that day. "I totally need a break after Chef's boot camp." I remarked. "I mean, I know I lost on that essay, but it was still tough."

DJ smiled faintly. "Yeah, true." he said. "I'm glad I didn't drop out first. I mean, holding the canoe wasn't as big a struggle for me as it was for some people, but I don't know how I got through the night training before the essay."

I smiled. "I like that you can admit that." I said. "Most guys would rather die than admit they couldn't handle something." That was the moment I decided to take a risk. "I'm sure that kind of attitude gets you a lot of girls."

DJ blushed and said "Well...actually...I don't really see a lot of girls outside of school. I've dated a few, but...you know...most girls don't notice me."

It made sense on a superficial standard. If I was to be absolutely honest, the contestant that had probably had the most girlfriends was Trent, purely because he was cool and musically talented. But it didn't matter to me – I really did like DJ, and besides, it was obvious that Trent was into Gwen.

"Well, I noticed you." I said shyly. "And personally, I think those who don't are missing out."

I scooted slightly closer to him. Not enough to be clearly making a move, but enough to make both of us hyperaware of our closeness.

We were both silent for a moment.

Finally, DJ began "Elle..." It was then that I realized that he'd never really called me by name before.

"Yeah?" I whispered back.

I suddenly realized that DJ had a scared look on his face. "Uh...there was something I wanted to say, but I think there's only one way I can do it without chickening out. Could you...uh, close your eyes?"

I knew what was coming next, so I obediently closed my eyes. And let's be honest, this time, I was right – it was a kiss. Only on the cheek, but still a kiss.

But who says it had to be traditional? It was one second long. Yeah, that's right. One second. When I opened my eyes again, I looked back at DJ. He looked terrified of what I was going to say.

"Did...did you just..."

"Yeah, I did. I...I mean, I'm sorry if I moved too fast and didn't ask you, I just didn't think any of it through and I'll understand if you don't-"

I shut DJ up by returning the kiss, only this one took a little longer, and it was on the lips. When I pulled away, he appeared stunned. No, seriously, he froze, except for blinking.

"Hello?" I laughed, waving a hand in front in front of his face. "Earth to DJ!"

DJ snapped out of it and finally said "Why did you..."

"Because I like you." I said. "Besides, you did it first. And reason number three, you weren't going to let me get the words out before running off if I didn't do something." I smiled sweetly. "So, I've said my bit. I really like you. Do you like me?"

This made DJ chuckle. "Considering my reaction, I think you already know the answer is yes."

"So what do we do now?" I asked. "Is this the part where one of us asks the other out?"

"I guess."

"Will you go out with me?" we both asked at the same time. Then we both answered "Yes!"

When I went back to my cabin that afternoon, Leshawna gave me a knowing grin. "What?" I asked.

"Why didn't you tell me that you and DJ were into each other?" she asked. "Don't lie, I saw you guys earlier."

I blushed. I hadn't even noticed anyone had been around, much less if they had been looking at me. "Sorry." I mumbled. "I didn't really say anything to anyone. The only ones who knew anything were Bridgette and Geoff. Bridgette only because she told me that she thought he had a crush on me, and Geoff because he's my brother and he always knows within a week if I've got a crush, so it was easier to just tell him."

"So are you guys going out?" Leshawna asked interestedly. "What's been happening between you? Details, girl, details!"

"We've kissed, like, twice." I told her. "We're not even official or anything – sort of at the step Duncan and Courtney got to before Courtney left."

"Anything else happens, I want to know immediately, okay?"

I nodded, smiling.

The next day was not so full of smiles. We were woken up by a low-flying plane, courtesy of Chris. It was way too early. There were three challenges – extreme sky-diving onto sofa beds (Trent and DJ), extreme rodeo moose riding (Leshawna and Geoff), and extreme waterskiing on mud (Lindsay and Harold).

The skydiving was from five thousand feet with parachutes, apparently. The team would push the sofa bed to accommodate the person landing. I didn't know if that was supposed to be good or bad news, but Trent seemed chilled about it, at least. "'Best glimpse of Heaven's on the way into Hell'." he quoted some song.

The moose riding was basically about riding a Canadian bucking moose for eight seconds or landing in a pile of soiled socks.

Finally, the last challenge was waterskiing in mud and collecting five flags along the way, while a member of the other team drove them along, across to the finish line.

Lindsay didn't seem deterred by the mud, though, squealing "Cool! I can model my new bikini!"

Plus, there was a reward for this challenge – not just immunity, but this amazing mobile shower. And after weeks of the cold showers in the communal bathrooms, the sparkling blue of the showers and all the different products on the shelf looked amazing. Maybe I could even get my hair back to normal. I'd come here with straight blonde hair just past my chin. Before now, I'd always thought it was easy to handle, because let me tell you, Geoff had way more problems with his hair getting greasy than I did (well, why did you think he wore a cowboy hat 24-7). Now, my hair had gone completely haywire because I'd run out of shampoo and had to borrow some from Lindsay, whose hair was so differently textured that it didn't have such a good effect.

So yeah, faced with the possibility to have a decent shower with top-quality shampoo, soap, etc was very tempting. I almost wished I was doing one of the challenges, because I was so desperate for that shower, I'd win, no question about it.

Heather had the same expression on her face as I did.

"A shower?" Owen said, scarfing marshmallows. "How about something good?"

I wasn't going to snap at him, but Heather did it, and got across the point I wanted to make in the process. "Listen to me, you marshmallow-eating goof! We are gonna win that shower if it's the last thing we do, got it?" Owen nearly choked on his marshmallow, and I smiled at him once he was all right.

"Heather's right, Owen." I told him. "We can't screw up on this – I mean, my hair needs this shower!"

Owen just looked confused.

At breakfast, Chef found a love letter in the food he made. The only ones still in the mess hall besides me were Bridgette and Gwen, so we took a look at it too.

It was a haiku poem.

"Whoa, some dude's crushing big time." Bridgette grinned. She held it out. "It's probably for one of you."

I shook my head. "Not me. I forgot to tell you...DJ and I talked things out and so we're kind of semi-official. And I don't think anyone else is interested. I think it's for one of you two."

"Really?" Gwen said. "I was gonna say I thought it was for one of you."

"But Trent is totally crushing on you!" Bridgette pointed out to her. "I've seen the way he always scams an extra muffin for you."

"Yeah, but Geoff is so into you!" Gwen and I said at the same time.

"Remember at the dock yesterday, when he tried to get your attention?" Gwen said.

"What did he do?" I asked. "What happened?"

"Basically got knocked into a dock and then dragged around the water." Gwen said, giggling. "Then again," she added, "Geoff probably couldn't even pronounce 'haiku', let alone write one."

Bridgette frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, he's just not exactly the scholarly type." Gwen was right about that. If Geoff had written that haiku, it would be a first for him. Love poems weren't exactly his forte.

But Bridgette was getting pretty annoyed, especially when Gwen said that Trent was more likely to be able to write a haiku.

"Well, at least Geoff isn't a poser!" snapped Bridgette. "He probably doesn't even write his own songs."

I knew it was time to step in. "Guys, stop!" I said firmly. "There's a chance that any of the guys at camp wrote the poem for any one of the girls. Does it really matter who wrote the poem?"

But neither girl would back down. I'd never seen Bridgette get so confrontational.

In fact, both girls tried to talk to the guys throughout the challenge. But when Gwen mentioned haikus, Trent just looked confused, and when Bridgette mentioned 'writing' as being romantic, Geoff didn't get it.

The Killer Bass won the skydiving challenge. Trent didn't quite land on the sofa bed, but about a foot away (seriously, how has he survived a concussion, poisonous fugu, and now a five thousand foot drop?) DJ made a perfect landing, probably because Owen hadn't fallen asleep on their sofa.

"Nice going, Trent." snapped Heather.

I gave her a shove. "It wasn't his fault he missed! Stop being so mean!"

"Trent, is there anything you want to ask me before they take you to get...reboned?" Gwen asked.

"Yeah..." Trent managed. "...is my hair messed up?" No, seriously. Bridgette had a bit of a smirk on her face at that time.

When Bridgette mentioned haikus again, Geoff just asked "What's a haiku?"

I sighed. "You know something, Geoff? Sometimes I feel embarrassed to be your sister. A haiku is a Japanese poem with seventeen syllables."

We won the moose rodeo. Geoff didn't last very long and landed in the sock pile. One thing I could say – if the Bass won, he could definitely use that shower after that. However, Leshawna lasted for ages.

Gwen and Bridgette made up while Leshawna won the challenge for us, and all three of us discussed the other four guys on the island, if they'd written it or not.

It was time for the mudskiing challenge. Lindsay showed up in a green bikini, just as Heather volunteered to drive for Harold. Duncan would drive for Lindsay. While Harold got ready, the three of us narrowed down the choices of guys.

"We know Duncan was crushing on Courtney, so he's out." Bridgette said. "And Harold is..."

At that moment, Harold came out of the outhouse, and promptly fell on his face.

"Yeah." Gwen nodded. He'd remembered to pull his briefs up, but only those.

"DJ could still have written it." Bridgette said. "Maybe he did it before yesterday and it was only found today."

Gwen nodded. "I'll take Owen, you take DJ."

I frowned. "Sure it couldn't have been Harold? I could try to check him out, since you've already both got someone to ask."

I couldn't ask Harold just then, because he was in the challenge. He got all the flags, but still didn't win. See, an overhanging branch caught on Heather's halter top, and Harold stared so much that he forgot to look where he was going.

And (this is good) Lindsay was so determined to get the shower, that even Duncan's crazy driving didn't stop her winning.

It was great to have a real shower for the first time in four weeks, just let me say that. Finally, I went back to see if Bridgette and Gwen had found out anything about the haiku. Nothing.

"Harold is the only one it could've been." I said. "But I was really hoping you two found something, because I just can't see him being able to write so well."

"But if it isn't, who could it be?" Bridgette wondered.

"Who could what be?" asked Leshawna as she was passing. Bridgette showed her the note.

"Another note from your secret admirer, Leshawna?" asked Chris. Yes, the note had been for her all along! But we were still clueless as to who had a crush on her.

The Killer Bass went to elimination as per usual, but we all saw him leave – Harold, that is. He walked the Dock of Shame with a faint smile, head held high.

"Farewell, Total Drama Island." he said. "I loved, I lost, and I saw _boobies. _What more could a man ask for?"

"You loved?" repeated Gwen. Did he...

"You're a man?" Leshawna said, making me giggle. Nah, he couldn't be the one to...

"You saw boobies?" Bridgette repeated his rather childish phrasing.

Finally, Harold put his suitcases into the Boat of Losers and said...

"Leshawna, I meant every word of that poem."

"Poem?" exclaimed Leshawna. "That was _you?"_

"No way." murmured Bridgette. "You were right, Elle."

Suddenly, Leshawna and Harold were running from each end of the dock to the middle, and we all witnessed their first kiss under the moonlight. Awww, it was so sweet!

"Wait a sec." Geoff said as the boat took Harold away. "So...Harold saw your boobies?"

Leshawna frowned. No one had seen hers at all. It took only a second before we realized whose Harold had actually seen.

Heather finally stepped out of the shower in her towel, and Leshawna went straight for her. "You messed with the wrong sister!"  
"Oh please, it was a total fluke." Heather sighed. "You think I'd actually show that dweeb my boobs on purpose?" But it didn't matter. Heather would have to sleep with one eye open for the next few nights.

It was getting late, so I had to say goodnight to everyone (I kissed DJ on the cheek), and return to my cabin.

Little did I know, our cabin would become a little more crowded.

**The merge approaches! YAAAAAYYYY! Elle made it halfway. Please review!**


	15. Chapter 15: Girl Talk? Girl Tension!

**So, the merge. Yeah. Let's see what happens. Thanks for reviewing, DarkQueenOfWonderland and Ali6132.**

When we went into the mess hall the next morning, we weren't given food. Apparently it was to do with the challenge for the day.

"First," Chris said, "All the girls will be moved to the Gophers' cabin, and all guys will stay in the Bass cabin. Today's challenge is as old as history itself – a battle of the sexes!"

Lindsay stuck her tongue out at the boys. I grinned at Bridgette, who would be the only new girl on the team. After we settled in, we'd have our challenge. And this is even better – no one would be kicked off this week. Finally, it was time to relocate.

I was walking with Leshawna and Gwen at the time, so I could only watch as Heather fell into step beside Bridgette. "Wow, your hair looks great today! So natural."

"Thanks." Bridgette said. "I-"

"How do you take care of it? You have to show your secret."

"Oh, it's nothing, really..."

Gwen and I caught up with the girls. "Watch it with this one." Gwen warned Bridgette. "She's trouble." While Heather was busy giving Gwen a death glare, I walked a little further with Bridgette. "Ignore that." I said. "Our cabin's pretty divided. It'll be great to have you with us, though."

Bridgette was unlucky enough to walk into our cabin just as Leshawna and Heather were having a massive argument because Heather had taken Leshawna's pudding pockets and wouldn't show any remorse, not even fake remorse. Well, I didn't know she was there for a minute, but I knew she'd been standing there long before I noticed her.

"That's my food!" Leshawna yelled. "No one touches my food!"

"Whatever," snapped Heather, "Deal with it! It serves you right for leaving your junk everywhere! Especially that!" She pointed at the purple bra hanging off Leshawna's bed. "That is bugging me."

"Yeah, it'd bug me too if I didn't have anything in the front or in the back to shake!"

"Yeah? Well, you've got so much junk in your trunk, your jeans should come with a trash compactor!"

"Ooh, you want a piece of this?"

"Uh-oh." murmured Bridgette, which was when I finally noticed her. I opened my mouth, but Heather got there first.

"Bridgette!" she exclaimed in a really fake bright tone. "It's so good to see you! Come in, come in! Welcome to our cabin! We're like one big family in here!"

"Big and dysfunctional." Gwen muttered.

"Anything you need, just yell." Heather continued, linking arms with Bridgette.

"Thanks for the awesome welcome, Heather." she said. She'd looked a bit overwhelmed at first, but she seemed to be adjusting.

"Welcome to the club!" Lindsay welcomed Bridgette too. "It'll be so much fun, as long as you do _everything _Heather says. Ow!" Heather had stomped on Lindsay's cowgirl boot.

Let's be honest, it didn't take too much time before Heather showed her true colours, simply because Bridgette wanted to get along with everyone.

"Watch what you take from this girl, Bridgette." Leshawna warned.

"Mind your own business!" Heather snarled at her.

"It's our business too!" I snapped. "Bridgette's my friend, too, you know."

"And we're a team and we gotta live in the same cabin!" Leshawna added.

"Yeah, we're a team!" Bridgette herself added. "We should be using this as an opportunity to get to know each other better!"

Heather glared at her. "You wanna play that way? Fine! Be on their side!" She started putting down duct tape, starting at the middle of the door, and separating the bunks on her and Lindsay's side from the bunk I shared with Gwen and the one Leshawna used to share with Beth.

"This is my side, and that's your side." Heather stated. "You can choose the weird girls if you want, but just so you know, once you do, you're, like, not allowed on our side. Right, Lindsay?"

Lindsay, as usual, followed Heather's lead.

"Let's build bridges, not walls." Bridgette protested.

"Take your pick." was Heather's only answer.

"But Bridgette's right!" I said. "We're a team, so we have to work together. Heather, take the stupid duct tape off and work with us."

But she wouldn't. There was only one thing Bridgette could do: Choose. With my eyes, I asked Bridgette to join us. She didn't want to choose, I knew it, but she had to.

Finally, she...crossed the line to join me, Leshawna, and Gwen. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"You just dug your own grave." Heather informed her.

"Let's try to get along, okay?" Bridgette pleaded. "Otherwise the guys are gonna cream us, don't you get it?"

Heather tossed Bridgette's bags over to our side in answer. "Tough room."

I put my hand on Bridgette's shoulder. "Sorry that had to happen, Bridge." I said. "Our cabin got kind of divided, like I said. Let's see...most of us can't stand Heather, and that's basically the problem. Lindsay's actually really nice, but she follows Heather's every command. But Leshawna and Gwen are great."

Bridgette sighed. "I kind of knew Heather couldn't be trusted, but I didn't want to pick sides."

"Cheer up!" I said brightly. "I'm actually glad you're on my team now."

We went back to the mess hall, for breakfast and the challenge.

"Today's challenge is," Chris told us, "The Brunch of Disgustingness! You will be getting a nine course meal. Each member of each team must finish each dish. You will not know whether the next dish will be grosser than the last, not as gross, or just as gross. Just that it will likely be gross."

But still, if we won, we'd get two days at a five-star resort. If we lost, we'd have no food for the rest of the day, and we'd have to stay stuck at camp.

I went to the confessional. "Oh no. What if I can't do this? I'm not good at endurance challenges, and that includes putting gross stuff in my mouth, unless I can swallow it straight away." I sighed. "Well, I do have a strong stomach and I've survived half of that awful risotto dish that I accidentally ordered one time at that restaurant. "

The first dish was misshapen meatballs. Well...technically.

"It's beef testicles!" Chef explained.  
I gulped, looking down at the weird dish. Tentatively, I tried one.

It didn't taste that bad – just like beef, but with a bit of weirdness. I made myself think about it as regular beef, and finished first out of all the girls.

Heather looked at me in awe. "How did you do that?" She'd finished about half of it.

"Closed my eyes and thought of it as regular beef." I said. "Try it."

Bridgette was still staring at her plate, not even trying. "I'm a vegetarian!" she said when Heather yelled at her. "It's against my principles."

"Are you sabotaging the team just to spite me?"

I honestly couldn't see a way around this. Any other time, I would've defended Bridgette, but we needed to win this.

It was Geoff who helped her out. "It's not that big a deal. Sometimes they castrate bulls for...uh...medical reasons." I grinned and gave him the thumbs up, but I noticed Duncan narrowing his eyes from the boys' table.

We won, and Bridgette thanked Geoff for helping. There was a very short argument between him and the other boys, but when Chris called them to attention, they all forgave each other instantly. Wow.

The next course was pizza. But it was live grasshoppers with jellyfish sauce and live anchovies.

None of us liked it. I took a bite of the piece that was just mozzarella, and that tasted okay. But the minute I had one of the anchovies in my mouth, I couldn't eat it, because I could feel it flopping around in my mouth.

"Ugh, I can't do this!" I exclaimed. Heather had screamed at the sight of a grasshopper, and Leshawna said she wouldn't eat it.

Gwen glared at all of us. She was actually doing okay. And Heather kept it all down.

I managed to finish my slice, and so did Bridgette, but Lindsay was too scared. "There is no way I'm eating that!" she squealed. "It's not even food."

Bridgette tried to help by showing her how to meditate, while we fed her the pizza.

Meanwhile, Trent told his team to hold him down and force-feed him the slice, no matter how much he begged them to stop, and that I had to watch.

Trent did a lot of yelling. "No, stop! Wait, it was a joke! Ha ha ha! I'm warning you, my dad's a lawyer!"

It was Leshawna who lost the round for us. The guys finished before she did.

The next dish was basically worms with snail slime sauce. I decided to use the method Bridgette taught Lindsay for this one. I didn't expect it to work on me, but it actually kind of did. Geoff actually tried to make a run for it, but DJ had to go and bring him back.

The guys still won by blindfolding themselves. And this time, I had to run to barf. But we still had to show the boys our girl power.

I won't go through all of the other courses, because trust me, it was the same story. We won the next round, and we ate, with finally 4-4. But then there was the last course – dolphin hotdogs. Now that was just cruel.

"But dolphins are our friends!" Bridgette protested instantly.

"What are you waiting for?" hissed Heather. "It's already dead! Eat it, or we don't win!"

"I can't!" Bridgette cried. "I'm a surfer! I swam with dolphins!"

"Eat it!'

"No! I'm not doing it! You can't pressure me!"

"Exactly, have a heart!" I added. "I can't do this either. It's totally cruel."

DJ added that he wouldn't do it, either, so we had a tiebreaker challenge with blended roach. It was just Leshawna vs Owen. Just so you know, we lost. Owen was always going to be the winner.

"Leshawna, you are completely useless!" raged Heather, just as my friend started barfing. I was very glad for my strong stomach. I ran out of the mess hall, and I didn't barf again.

As for us girls, we locked Heather and Lindsay out of the cabins for a while, but eventually, I decided to let them in. It was a miserable day, overall. Bridgette joined us in the cabins, but that was the only good thing about the day.

**Ugh, this episode made me feel sick! Anyone else have a weak stomach? Please review!**


	16. Chapter 16: No Torture, No Hundred Grand

**Let's torture Elle some more, okay? Thanks for your review, Ali6132 (Lindsay was eliminated before that episode).**

The next two days weren't much fun for us, even though the boys seemed to be having great fun when they finally got back to the island. Oh yeah, and they should have gotten the memo, we didn't want to hear it.

But finally, Chris made the announcement that it was now every camper for themselves.

Seconds before, Duncan had said that the five of them were "closer then family". When Chris made that announcement, he immediately said "Well, it's about time we flew solo."

I shrugged. "So we're competing for ourselves only. It doesn't mean we can't stay friends with people outside of challenges. Right, Bridge?"

Bridgette looked unsure of herself, her eyes flickering around the others, but she nodded a bit.

"Then...get ready for this!" Chris said through the intercom.

A ship was coming back. And someone was on it. I hadn't seen her in nearly four weeks, but the monobrow, the ponytail, the scowl...that could only belong to one person.

"Oh, man, what is she doing here?" Trent wondered.

"Back by popular audience demand," Chris announced, "It's Eva!"

And the girl had fire in her eyes. "That's right." she said. "I'm back. And just so we're clear, not only am I gonna kick butt, but I'm giving special attention to my backstabbing Bass team who voted me off!"

I shivered. Looked like Bridgette, DJ, Geoff and Duncan were in trouble. Well, I wasn't worried about Duncan, he could handle himself anyway, but I was a little anxious about my brother, semiofficial boyfriend and one of my closest friends.

Gwen reminded Chris that he said no one was allowed back, but Chris' answer was just "Oh yeah, that. Yeah. I lied."

"You can't do that!" Gwen protested. "It's not fair!" But Chris didn't care.

But Eva wasn't the only contestant back. A demented scream of joy rang through the air as the other returning camper swung in on a vine.

"Hey, guys, it's good to be back at camp! Even though I never actually left the island. I was living in the woods all this time!"

"Hi, Izzy." I muttered, taking a step back. I hadn't really forgiven the time she scared us all by pretending to be a bear. And if she was able to blow up a kitchen, what else might she do?

"But I thought the RCMP hunted you down." Gwen said.

"They tried. But being a wilderness survivor, I was swift-footed and avoided capture." She took out a fish and bit into it. "Once I was safe with my animal brethren, it was just me against the harsh elements."

"You call this harsh? It's been warm and sunny all week!" Leshawna pointed out.

"Not where I was." Izzy said. "But luckily, I was able to take refuge in a beaver dam. I befriended a family of beavers there, and together we foraged for nuts and berries. Boy, I could use a bag of nachos right now." She suddenly got down and started scratching herself with her foot like an animal. "So, what's new with you guys?"

But before the challenge started, the two returning competitors had time to unpack.

"What's with the tape?" Eva demanded. "Somebody better answer me!"

"Me and Heather got a little...territorial." Leshawna explained. "But we're all cool now, right, Heather?"

Even the meanest girl in the cabin was scared of Eva. She started taking the tape off. "Absolutely. Want my bunk, Eva?"

"I want this one," Eva stated, gesturing to Bridgette's bed and pushing the surfboard aside, "Unless Miss Backstabbing Traitor who voted me off has a problem with that!"

She was going way too far. "Time out!" I called. "We hate voting people off. It's not personal, so could you please leave Bridgette alone?" I was as afraid of Eva as anyone, but anyone saying things like that about my friends was over the line. Apart from that, Bridgette wasn't a backstabbing traitor, any more than any other Killer Bass team members were – they had to vote someone off. Besides, as I discovered later, Heather had actually sparked off the outburst that got Eva kicked off.

Leshawna stepped in. "Exactly. You can get all up in her face, but don't forget we are all here to win!"

"You've got that right, Sister Thunder-Thighs." Eva replied.

"Oh, oh, tell me the macho mama with butt-cheeks tighter than my weave did not just say that!"

"Time out!" Gwen and I said at the same time.

"Can't we just talk this out over low-cal snacks?" Lindsay put in.

"Whatever." Eva shrugged, stalking out of the cabin. "I'm still gonna win!"

"Hey, thanks for stepping in." Bridgette said to me and Leshawna.

"Oh, my pleasure." Leshawna smiled at her. "Nobody disses Shawnee's thighs!"

"And no one calls my friend a backstabbing traitor!" I added.

Then it was time for our challenge – torture. No, seriously, it was another endurance challenge.

No way.

I was not good at endurance challenges at the best of times, and I couldn't be sure that I could survive it. But then again, Chris said we had to survive ten seconds. Maybe, just maybe, I could last that long.

Plus, we had the incentive of a cool trailer that we could take home if we lasted the longest.

Duncan was first up, and Chris spun the torture wheel for him. He had to stand in front of a soccer net, unprotected, while Chef used a hockey stick to throw snapping turtles at him, and he survived the whole ten seconds.

Lindsay had her whole face marshmallow waxed, and did surprisingly well, well enough to let her pick who went next with what kind of torture. Eva made Lindsay choose Bridgette with the barrel of leeches "because she's a backstabbing lowlife traitor. Grrr." Eva whispered all this for Lindsay to say.

But guess what? Geoff stepped in and did the torture for her. However, he didn't quite do the ten seconds required and had to be put in the stocks that popped up instead of his original seat.

Soon enough, everyone was in the stocks. I, like Geoff, couldn't handle ten seconds of torture. I had Chinese water torture, except it was more frequent dripping and the water was boiled. I only managed eight and a half seconds before giving up. Soon enough, only Izzy, Eva and Leshawna were in the game.

Izzy was given electric shocks by eels, and her response? "That was great! Hit me again!"

Izzy was allowed to choose who went next, and she chose herself, with a poison ivy facial, but because she wanted more than the ten seconds, Chris said she was out.

Now it was down to two, it was time for sudden death. If Leshawna survived the grizzly bear log roll (meaning she and a trained bear had to run on a log for ten seconds without falling off), she'd win.

Guess what? She did win, so she had immunity, and much as I hated to not pick Heather, since she was going too far, I had to vote Eva off. She really had it in for Bridgette and I wasn't going to let that pass. Besides, I could stand up to Heather, but if I pushed Eva too far, she could maim me with her bare hands.

I sighed in the confessional as I voted. "I vote for Eva. I know she just got back, but she's got it in for Bridgette and I won't stand for it!"

All would've been well, except, Chris decided to air all of our confessionals at the campfire. Mine was first, and Eva gave me a glare. However, the next one to air was Heather's. "Since Leshawna's immune, there's no other choice but ragaholic Eva."

Eva's glare shifted from me to Heather.

Duncan's was next. "I vote for Heather, because I know she's behind Courtney getting kicked off. You'll pay for that, toots. If you're watching this on cable, I miss you, babe." That one made me smile, although I was pretty sure Heather didn't care whether Courtney left or not, and I was sure she didn't do anything. But it was very sweet that Duncan was voting for Heather because of that. The shout out to Courtney was also cute.

Gwen came next. "Eva's a freak, so see ya."

After that, it was Bridgette. "Please, please, Eva. I'm _so _glad you never air these."

Then it was DJ. "Eva's nuts. Sorry, girl."

Then Geoff. "It's gotta be Eva, unless I can figure out who snagged my other lucky hat."

I snickered. When Geoff looked at me, I shrugged. "Duh, I took it. You're obsessed with that thing. But it disappeared mysteriously from our cabin last night." Hey, he had more than one hat. He'd be over it by tomorrow, I knew.

Then Lindsay's confessional played, although the first thing she said was marvelling at how smooth her skin was after the marshmallow waxing. "I just can't get over how smooth this is! Oh, and I vote off Ava, cause she's scarier than Heather, Laquisha and Gwen combined." I rolled my eyes at the names she'd gotten wrong, but I was starting to learn to expect it from her.

Eva's voting confessional only showed one of her brown eyes up close to the camera. "Unless they wanna leave in body bags, they better _not _say my name. I vote for Heather."

For some reason, Chris didn't air Izzy's, Owen's, Trent's, or Leshawna's.

Of course, Eva had to go, and she was furious. "This isn't the end of me! I'm not done! I'll get my revenge!"

She was put on the Boat of Losers in a straightjacket, still yelling. "I'm not done with you! Oh, and Izzy lied! She wasn't in the woods! She was-"

"Wow, she has issues, huh?" Izzy interrupted with a giggle. "Party in Leshawna's new crib!"

I was so glad Izzy said that, because otherwise, Geoff would've probably grilled me about taking his hat. But hey, when it came to our family, parties were way more important. Besides, like I said, Geoff had an extra hat.

So we all cheered and stayed up late in Leshawna's awesome trailer.

**I heard that Izzy was at Playa Des Losers with everyone else, but if that was true, how did the RCMP not track her down? And BTW, if you don't remember, Geoff's hat that Elle took was actually taken by the yeti. So she took it, but a bear got to it, and it also got to some clothes that Sadie or Katie left, apparently. That was so funny to see that bear squeal and clap. Okay, please review!**


	17. Chapter 17: Manipulation of The Musician

**Thanks for your reviews, Ali6132 and the guest reviewer.**

**Oh boy, do I remember this episode. It was one I remembered very well on my first watch. I wanted Heather gone more than ever after this...and then I got to the third season and actually began to like her (we'll get to that season later). Let's see what happens!**

I was glad we had a break the next day, because it was nice to chill again. The girls' cabin was less divided, mainly because Izzy was with us and no one wanted to start a fight with her.

I spent most of the break with DJ. Now that we were making it official and the teams were merged, it was perfectly normal for us to hang out more and more. Also, maybe I should add that DJ gave the best hugs. He wanted to take things slowly, more so than most guys I knew would, but then, he was sweeter than most guys I knew, too. I didn't mind too much, because it just showed that he wasn't like most guys, who thought with their hormones more often than not. It was definitely more about the emotion with us.

I still spent a lot of time with my friends. I was closest to Leshawna and Bridgette, but I was close to Gwen too. Izzy and Lindsay weren't exactly my friends, but they were nice enough in small doses. I mainly avoided Lindsay because she copied Heather's every move, but when Izzy wasn't telling insane stories, she was fun, although very, very tiring.

As I'd expected, Geoff pretty much forgot about me taking his other lucky hat by the morning. He never mentioned it again, anyway.

Leshawna slept in her trailer for the next couple of days, so our cabin wasn't too crowded. Izzy and Bridgette shared one bunk, with Gwen and I staying in the same bunks, and of course, Lindsay and Heather still sharing.

The next day, I got up early and went down to the dock to have a moment of peace. It didn't last too long, since after about five minutes, Trent came down for an early swim, but I didn't really mind. By the time he got out, most people were just starting to get up. Gwen was sitting near the dock, drawing something.

"Hey, beautiful, what're you sketching?" Trent called over to her.

"Nothing!" Gwen called back, with a nervous smile.

I grinned at Trent. "Why don't you ask her out?" I asked. "It's obvious you guys like each other, and you make a cute couple. I know she doesn't say it, but I think she really likes you."

"I don't know." Trent admitted. "Gwen's amazing, but I don't know if she'd say yes if I just asked her out now. I'm going to wait for her to talk to me first. I think she'd appreciate that."

I smiled. "You know her well."

Seconds later, a cannon sounded, and I saw Leshawna's trailer ruined. Whoever aimed that cannonball was officially no friend of mine.

Chris' voice rang out over a speaker, with a stereotypical pirate accent. "Arr, maties! Meet me at the amphitheatre in five minutes, and I'll tell you about today's challenge!" Oh, it was Chris. Well, he pissed me off from the first challenge, because of how much he seemed to love watching us defy death. Sadistic much?

Leshawna seemed okay when she got to the amphitheatre, although her bags still had steam rising from them. Guess she was outside, but they weren't.

Chris was dressed up as a pirate, and didn't drop the accent for some time. Even Chef was wearing a pirate hat. There was something covered up standing between them.

"Well, my little scalliwags," said Chris, "Have we got an adventure in store for ye!"

"What's under the sheet?" Geoff asked, straight to the point as usual.

"All in good time, laddie!" Chris answered. "Who here has a hankering for a good old-fashioned treasure hunt?"

I glanced at Gwen, and we both rolled our eyes.

"Now, this treasure hunt has a twist, maties!" continued Chris. "What you're looking for isn't hidden, and it isn't treasure!"

"If there's no treasure, then what's with the eye patch and the plastic parrot?" Duncan questioned.

"Arr, shiver me timbers!" cried Chris. "Good question, me boy! You're looking for keys to a treasure chest!" Three of which were under the sheet. "Inside each of these chests is a treasure that will pamper you landlubbers! And one of these chests will even give you invincibility! Har har!"

Finally, Chef brought over a bucket where we would be given clues on pieces of driftwood.

Owen looked at his clue. "A – a...bear?" he stammered.

"I was hoping you'd get that one, dude." Chris said gleefully, dropping his accent. Heather had Chef's fridge, and Geoff had the septic tank.

He looked at mine, which had pictures of rockpools and jellyfish. "Let me tell you, that one was really hard to tie down. You better get it dry the minute it's out if you want it to work!"

I groaned. The giant rockpools full of jellyfish? I'd already had jellyfish problems already. First, I slip from Lindsay's grasp and fall in a jellyfish pool, then I have to eat pizza with jellyfish on it, and now I have to grab a key from them?

I first ran to my cabin to find my towel. All I had to do was find the key, then scoop it out while holding my towel. That way, I wouldn't get stung.

It was surprisingly easy. I mean, the fact that it worked. I was soon on the girls' cabin deck, chilling out. Then I went back into the cabin for a while.

Lindsay came in about three hours before we were due to meet Chris. "Hey, Lindsay." I said. "Did you get your key?" She was covered in bee stings.

"Oh, hi, Elle!" Lindsay said brightly. She sighed. "No." Then she put something on Gwen's bed, seconds before I opened the door to the cabin, just as Gwen was going in.

"Did you find your key?" I asked.

Gwen nodded. She looked happier than usual, and even more happy on her way out. Seconds later, Lindsay burst out of the room, screaming about something.

"What's with her?" I wondered.

Gwen frowned a little. "I don't know. I didn't see her when I was in there, actually. But look at this!" She showed me what she was holding. It was a letter telling her to go to the Dock of Shame at five o'clock, two hours before we had to go back with our keys. And it was signed with Trent's name.

"So...did something happen with you guys?" I asked delicately. "I won't tell anyone if you don't want me too."

"He helped me get my key." was all Gwen said. "It was really cool of him."

"Um...can I ask you another question?" I said shyly. "I was talking to Trent this morning, and I think he really, really likes you. Do you like him?"

But at this, Gwen went quiet, so I didn't press the subject. I'd known Gwen long enough to know that if she wanted to tell me, she would, and I shouldn't keep asking.

I went for a walk around camp, since I had nothing better to do. I reached the cabins again around five, and I instantly saw Heather at the dock. Wait...was she..._crying? _Trent was saying something to her...okay, that letter told Gwen to go there at that time, but why was Heather there?

I came a little bit closer, so Heather wouldn't notice me, but I could hear what she was saying. Wow, the birds were making a lot of noise.

Finally, I was sitting under the dock, and I heard every word Heather was saying.

"...is just playing you for your vote, and Elle's in an alliance with her." Heather was saying to Trent. What was she talking about. "They've both played us all, and you're just so nice that I can't watch you fall for it any more!" She sounded like she was about to start sobbing. But I wasn't allying with anyone! What was she on about?

I waited to hear Trent's response before I could question her. I needed to know what this was about. "Wow." he said. "And all this time I thought she liked me...they both really said my music sucks?"

There was a pause, and then, suddenly, Heather said, "Maybe Gwen – and Elle – think your music sucks, but I think you're really talented."

Lie #2. I liked Trent's music. And now Heather was saying stuff like that about Gwen, too? I emerged from below the dock to confront her, but I was struck dumb by the sight that met my eyes.

Heather was kissing Trent. On the lips. It was a long kiss, and further away, I saw Gwen, who was on her way to the dock, stopping and seeing it. I saw the letter fall, and she ran off. As soon as the kiss ended, Trent also fled.

I went up to Heather angrily. "What the hell was that?" I yelled at her. "You know perfectly well that everything you just said about Gwen and I wasn't true! And how could you kiss Trent? He doesn't even like you, and I know you don't like him! You've said a billion times how pathetic you think he is!"

Heather just stood there with that annoying smirk on his face. "Oh, Elle." she sighed patronizingly. "This is why you haven't won any challenges yet. It's called a competition. Look it up." And with that, she walked straight past me, as if nothing had ever happened.

About half an hour before Chris called us, Leshawna found me sitting at the dock. "Hey." she said. "I'm just getting the message out to people. We need to vote off Heather. She's playing around with Gwen's boy Trent."

I nodded. "I saw her doing it. She was telling Trent all this stuff, but then they kissed. So one of them has to go home? My vote's for Heather. Want me to help spread the word?"

Leshawna smiled. "I could use some help, since we've only got half an hour left to get the word out."

I only managed to find a few people (okay, I only found Izzy), and I hadn't been able to ask Trent what Heather had been telling him, since I couldn't find him when Chris finally called us to get our treasure. But at least I was a little bit of help.

"Izzy, you've got a snake on your head." Duncan told her.

"I know, but don't worry, he's friendly." Izzy said calmly. The snake bit her forehead. "See? Kisses!" She instantly fell over.

My key opened a chest with...a box of Sweet Truth handmade chocolates. Well, okay.

Owen's key didn't open any chests, Duncan found chips, Geoff got cologne (which would help after having to swim in the septic tank), etc. Most things were just weird. Bridgette and DJ didn't have their keys at all.

Heather had the best treasure – a gift basket. "Oh, and look!" she said, pulling one thing out of it. "An invincibility pass! Lucky me."

DJ and Bridgette glared at her, as did I. "Did Leshawna tell you?" I whispered. They nodded.

Despite whatever Heather had said, Trent still should've known better than to let her kiss him. Hello! She's _Heather. _The same Heather who our team had unofficially dubbed "Queen of Mean" when we were still in teams. So it looked like we were voting him off.

I made my vote in the confessional. "Hurting Gwen like that is cruel. Doing that without realizing Gwen is watching is dumb. Cruelty would overrule stupidity, but since she has invincibility, sorry, Trent, you're going."

Sure enough, Trent was the one left without a marshmallow.

"That's right!" Leshawna said fiercely. "Take your two-timing ways back to where you came from!"

He gasped. "What? But I thought I was getting along so well with everybody!"

"I guess you were wrong." Heather said coolly.

"You don't even care, do you?" Gwen spoke up.

"Hey, just playing the game." Heather shrugged.

Trent frowned at Gwen. "Why should you care? You think I'm a cliché."

"Where'd you get that from?" Gwen asked.

"Her." Heather.

I scowled. "Let me guess, she said I thought the same thing? Just before she kissed you? That's right, I saw it all."

"Even after all this, I still didn't vote you off!" Gwen told him.

"Then how'd I get the boot?" Trent asked.

"My bad." Leshawna said. "I jumped the gun on that one. Told everyone to turf out you or Heather."

"But tonight I'm invincible." Heather said smugly. "So that leaves poor old Trent here."

"Looks like we got played." Leshawna concluded. "Sorry."

"Oh no!" cried Gwen.

"It's okay." Trent told her. "Whatever happened, happened. At least we both know that we're still okay. We're still okay, right?"

Gwen smiled at him. "Yes."

"I want you to be tough and fight to the end, for both of us." Trent told her. "I'll be watching and cheering for you back home."

And they would've kissed, had Chris not pulled them apart.  
"Wait, one more thing!" I said. "Trent, are we still friends? I heard Heather saying things about me too."

Trent gave me a friendly smile and nodded. We all walked down to the dock to say goodbye. Gwen waved with tears in her eyes, standing a little further than the rest of us as the Boat of Losers took Trent away.

"Love to stick around, but it's been a long day and I'm gonna hit the showers." Heather said behind us. "Great work, everybody!"

I sidled up to Leshawna. "Any ideas for revenge?" I whispered.

Leshawna grinned. "Definitely. I'll change the pipes, you shred her clothes."

**Like I said, this ep made me despise Heather more than ever. Gwent was my favourite Season 1 pairing, followed closely by Duncney (which was ruined once Courtney started trying to control everything about it). What's your favourite pairing across season's? Mine's Aleheather – I love the whole love-hate rivalry and there's just so much chemistry! So review, and tell me your favourite pairings!**


	18. Chapter 18: I Hide, Lindsay Seeks

**Another good ep, but not so great. Oh, and BTW, in the last chapter, the reason Heather was talking about Elle as well as Gwen was because when Heather started saying all those things about Gwen, Trent brought it up that Elle had said that Gwen was into him.**

**Thanks for reviewing, The Girl who is FandomStruck (I get it, but I quite like Coderra and I have a suspicion Noah is asexual), DarkQueenOfWonderland (that's unusual) and Ali6132 (someone needs to write a Justin/Mirror fic...hmm, I kind of want to write Justin/OC...and I'm with you about Heather, but she'll redeem herself at some point).**

Heather was furious that I'd shredded most of her clothes, but hey, she tried to break up Gwen and Trent. She deserved it.

Gwen missed Trent a lot, but Leshawna and I comforted her.

"I just miss him so much already." she said.

"Well, baby girl," Leshawna said, "Nothing heals a broken heart like revenge."

All three of us got wicked smiles.

The challenge for the day was Hide-And-Seek. Yeah, you heard me. After ten minutes to hide, Chef would try to hunt each of us down. If he caught us, he'd douse us with a surprisingly scary water gun. No, really – he demonstrated on Chris that it was a huge water blast. It blew Chris about 500 metres away.

"How do we win this thing?" Heather asked.

There were three ways to win – not get found, get to home base (the lifeguard chair at the dock), or, after being caught, find someone else and turn them in.

I fled to the closest hiding place I could find, because I figured Chef wouldn't look close to home first. Too obvious. I hid underneath the cabin steps, hoping the green and blue in my clothes would camoflage me enough.

As it happened, I saw Chef pass the cabins, but he didn't look there – at least, not yet.

About an hour passed before Chef came back. I noticed high-heel wedge sandals and cowgirl boots following his boots. Lindsay and Heather. Maybe I should make a break for it.

As soon as I thought Chef had passed, I rolled out from my hiding spot – and stopped dead. Lindsay was standing there, smiling in her usual vapid way. It was just Lindsay, though.

"Oh, that is a great hiding spot!" she said. "I wish I'd thought of it!"

"Um, Lindsay?" I said. "Aren't you going to turn me in to Chef? To get invincibility?"

Lindsay frowned. "I get invincibility if I bring you to Chef?"

"Chris said that!" I told her. "If it was anyone else, I wouldn't let them, but with the way Heather treats you, I figure you deserve a break."

So that's how I was caught. And Lindsay couldn't be voted off.

Heather also found DJ and Owen, so she got invincibility again.

Chef caught Izzy following him, and then found Bridgette. Unfortunately, she ran into a bunch of skunks and they all sprayed her. Chef did douse her with the water gun, but it didn't help much. She needed something more than the lousy showers in the bathrooms. The skunk spray just wouldn't leave her alone, so I had to stay a few feet away from her.  
"I'm really sorry, Bridge." I said. "But those skunks really did a number on you."

"Oh, I know." Bridgette said, trying to smile. "I understand. Really."

Gwen was found hiding under a patch of grass. Geoff was hiding in a tree.

"I wonder where Duncan is hiding?" Gwen remarked.

"How should I know?" asked Owen. "I mean, it's not like the guys are forming a guys' alliance or anything." Gwen and I turned and looked at him. "Okay, they are forming one, but I'm not a part of it." A pause. "Okay, you broke me! There is an alliance and I'm not supposed to tell you but I did! There, are you happy?"

"Wow." I teased.

"We really had to drag that out of you." Gwen finished.

Finally, Chef came out of a cave with Duncan.

There was only one person left. Leshawna.

"I searched everywhere!" Chef stated. He thought for a moment. "The water..."

We raced to the dock, and...

"What took you so long, sugar?" Leshawna was sitting at home base triumphantly. That was three people with invincibility, and not one of them me.

Us girls had to talk about who to vote off, because if the guys were forming an alliance, we had to vote as a group, too.

Bridgette had to sit outside, but she said she could hear us talking inside. "I say we take out Duncan." she said. "He's mean and I'd tell him that to his face."

"Sounds good to me." Leshawna said. "I don't trust that little criminal."

I nodded. "I never trusted him. Besides, I saw him giving a deer a noogie on the first day and he threatened Noah, remember? Not to mention everything he did to Harold."

Heather disagreed. "Speaking of trust, I don't trust that Owen. He's always happy and smiling, it's creepy and unnatural. I say we lose him. Lindsay?"

Her alliance member nodded.  
"But Owen is like the nicest guy on the island!" Izzy argued. She went on to talk about some game or something Owen was good at. "Have you ever played that? It's so fun!"

"It's an elimination, not a dance! We have to vote someone off if we want to stay in the game!" snapped Heather. She smirked. "Hey, why don't you vote with us, Izzy? We'll be like BFFs!"

"Best Female Friends." Lindsay clarified.  
"Okay!" Izzy answered.

"You know she'll just dump you after the vote?" Leshawna pointed out.

"And stab you in the back?" I added.

Lindsay continued to paint her nails as she murmured "It's true. She will." Heather elbowed her, making her fall off the bed. Her bright pink nail polish spilled out onto the rug.

Lindsay gasped in horror, and for the first time, she seemed annoyed at Heather.

"You with us?" Heather asked the rest of us. Gwen, Leshawna and I shook our heads.

"No." called Bridgette from outside.

"Fine. Then let the chips fall where they may."

I really, really wanted to vote for Heather, but it was impossible. She had invincibility, again. As it was, Duncan was the second best choice. While I'd liked most of the boys on the island, he was the one I'd liked the least. And hey, he'd directly addressed Courtney in that one elimination, saying that he missed her. So if he went home, at least that would be one good thing.

At the campfire ceremony, there were soon only three people left, and two marshmallows and I could see why. My group had all voted Duncan out. Heather's group had tried to vote out Owen. And in between them sat the guys' alliance choice...Bridgette.

Yeah, I'd been shocked by that one. They couldn't vote off Heather, Lindsay or Leshawna, of course. But I'd expected them to vote off wildcard Izzy first. Her enjoyment of torture made her a strong player.

Chris called each of the players up one by one, even though I knew that if things went the way they should, Bridgette and Duncan would end up in a tiebreaker.

Sure enough, Owen was the next to be called up. But then, Chris finally called...

"Duncan."

I stared at him. "How could this happen?" I demanded. "Shouldn't they be in a tiebreaker? Those are the rules, right?"

"Uh, I was the one who wrote the rules." Chris said. "And although I'm shocked at the results too, it was my choice overall. And I say, Bridgette, the Dock of Shame awaits."

I was sad to see Bridgette walking down the dock with her bag and surfboard, looking very dejected. In those few weeks we'd been here, I'd actually become very close with her. But there was one person who was going to miss her even more than I would.

"Bridgette, I'm gonna miss you!" Geoff called out.

Bridgette smiled. "Me too! So you didn't vote me off?"

"No way!" Geoff said, taking a few steps to the edge of the dock so he didn't have to yell for her to hear him.

"You _didn't?_" Duncan repeated.

Geoff ignored him. "I could never vote you off, babe. You're my girl!"

Bridgette smiled again and said "Aww, I believe you!"

With that, both of them started towards each other. And I believe they would've kissed at that moment, if the skunk spray hadn't stuck to Bridgette. As it was, Geoff retreated before they could kiss.

"Okay! Bye!" he called.

That night, I talked to Geoff. "So did you really not vote for Bridgette?" I asked. "That seems weird, because if she didn't get four votes, then Duncan should've been gone."

"It didn't seem real." Geoff explained. "I did write Bridgette down, but then I tried to rub it out and wrote...I forget whose name I wrote. I guess Chris saw I'd tried to write her name first and figured that as my vote. It sucks."

"So are you and Bridgette...you know...a thing now?" I said. "Because that'd be really cool. I know you've liked her from the first day."

Geoff grinned a bit. "Yeah, I think we are." A tinge of red appeared on his face. "But," he added, "You look like you're about to tease me about it. You can't talk, not when you've been hanging out with everyone up until the merge, and now you spend at least seven hours every non-challenge day with DJ."

I think I may have blushed, although I laughed it off. "I wasn't going to tease you, honest! As long as, when we get home, you don't keep Bridgette all to yourself. She's still my friend."

Geoff seemed happy enough, even though betraying the guys' alliance caused him to be tied upside down to a tree in a sleeping bag that night.

Do I really need to explain why I tried to vote Duncan off last time?

**My favourite elimination is in the next episode. I'm trying to think of what my second favourite is, because I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way about this one. Although I know some people will rank Ella's elimination in PI high, which is another one I really like. Besides those two...probably Blaineley's elimination in TDWT, because my favourite line of that particular episode is her line: "Heather and Alejandro, just give it up and make out already!" Tell me your favourite elimination besides the next one in your review!**


	19. Chapter 19: Curses, Heather Won Again!

**What a mixed bag this episode is. But Lindsay turns this one from OK to wonderful! Thanks for reviewing, DarkQueenOfWonderland, Ali6132 and The Girl who is FandomStruck.**

The next day was another break. And as Geoff had said, I spent most of it with DJ. Sure, the guys were in their alliance, but it was a game. The votes were strategic, so on breaks, I still felt hanging out with anyone was okay, girl or guy.

"I can't believe I made it to the final ten." I remarked. "I mean, it's enough that I got accepted here, and that got to the merge, and I kind of knew Eva was going to go. And after Heather kissed Trent, the ending was inevitable. But I could so easily have gone after that."

"I didn't think I'd make it this far either." DJ admitted. "I honestly thought I was going to be kicked off after I took off my blindfold in the trust challenge and managed to screw up in the rock climbing challenge too."

I shrugged. "I disagree. You'd been helpful in earlier challenges, plus you didn't put anyone in the medical tent. It was pretty obvious that Sadie would be the one to go. I thought Heather might've tried to vote me off if she knew it was my idea to lock her in the fridge during the cooking challenge."

"That was your idea? I honestly didn't see that one coming."

"She was annoying everyone!" I said. "It wasn't like we were going to leave her in there. I mean, after she made Leshawna chop pineapples, which she was allergic to and proved that she was useless at doing anything apart from giving orders, we had to get her out of the way somehow."

"Well, I'm not usually one for meanness, but considering everything Heather's been up to ever since she came here..." DJ chuckled. "Pretty good!"

I still missed Bridgette, a lot, but I didn't fault the guys for their alliance. They probably felt intimidated with there being nearly twice as many girls as there were guys. Of course, now there were just six of us left.

Our next challenge was kind of fun. Well, sort of. The first thing we had to do was build a bike out of all this scrapped, and surprisingly, it actually wasn't too hard. I decided to keep my bike to a pretty traditional style, but I made the seat more comfortable and painted it with streaks of green and blue.

Chris looked at each of our bikes...well, Izzy and Leshawna had disappeared – Izzy had finished her bike early and offered Leshawna a ride. But everyone else was there.

"Excellent areodynamics, Heather." Chris commented.

"It only weighs two ounces." Heather said proudly.

"Like her brain." Gwen muttered to me, and I giggled.

Chris continued to hers. "Spooky, yet practical. Well done." He looked at mine next. "No points for originality, but if I saw this on sale in a bike shop, I might consider buying it."

Backhanded praise, but still praise.

Duncan's bike was pretty much like him. Serious, with a skull ornament.

Lindsay had tried to make one a bit like a little-girl bike that she'd wanted when she was younger but never got – a Sunset Sally, with a girly horse head at the front.

Chris didn't praise DJ's bike, which had training wheels. "Dude, seriously? This is lame."

Geoff's bike was really skinny...or whatever. Point was, it worked out, and Chris liked it. It also had a sketch of Bridgette pinned to the front. Well, he had spent a couple of mornings crying in the confessional about how much he missed her. I mean, I thought sitting in my cabin and feeling like it was empty was missing Bridgette. Oh well, I'd probably see her at the finale.

Owen was also complimented, although his bike was more of a tricycle.

Next was the race. "You'll be switching bikes!" Chris said brightly. "Yeah, cruel twist, huh? Alright then, see you at the beach!"

We all picked a name out of the hat. I had...DJ's bike? Oh well. Heather had my bike, Lindsay had Heather's, Duncan had Lindsay's (That sight would be priceless), Owen had Duncan's, Gwen had Owen's, Geoff had Gwen's, and DJ had Geoff's.

Chris then explained that if our bike made it across the finish line, we'd get to ride it for invincibility.

I didn't make it across the finish line, mainly because DJ's bike wouldn't budge. Nearly everyone was halfway across before I finally jumped off and started pushing it, and then I accidentally crashed into the wreck that had become Geoff's and Gwen's bikes (Geoff forgot a vital part of his bike and then crashed into it with Gwen's). Hey, the bike blocked my view!

But at least Heather got across the finish line with my bike, so I was still in the game.

"Five invincibility race winners!" Chris announced. "Owen's fun machine, Heather's speed machine! Elle's traditional wheeler, Lindsay's Sunset Sally, and Duncan's lethal weapon!"

Then we had to go to what Chris called the TDI motorcross. Oh yeah, and Izzy and Leshawna? They still hadn't shown up.

Using our own bikes, we had to dodge landmarks, go through an oil slick, and jump a pool of piranhas. "Oh, and one more thing." Chris said. "First one to cross wins invincibility. Last one to cross gets voted off the island. No bonfire, do not pass go, do not collect a marshmallow."

Heather started whispering something to Lindsay, while I assessed what I needed to do.

When the race started, Lindsay basically cleared everything for Heather to find a way to go. I used it too, but Heather still managed to pass me by bumping my bike. I was lucky not to wipe out, while Owen was stopped at the landmines, and Duncan ended up covered in oil.

Lindsay got stopped when her bike got stuck in the piranha pool, while I was in third place. But once it was out...we crossed the finish line, literally at the same time, joint second.

Heather won, of course. Couldn't she lose just once?

Lindsay gave her a hug. "We did it! We're safe!"

"That's not exactly true." Chris interrupted. "Heather is safe, because her bike crossed the line first, but since Duncan and Owen wiped out and didn't complete the race, they technically didn't cross the line at all, which makes you and Elle joint last to cross the line. Which means, it's DOUBLE Dock of Shame time, baby!"

Okay, that was unfair. Rightfully, Duncan or Owen should be going, but then, did I really expect Chris to be fair?

So Lindsay and I were both going.

"But I won!" Lindsay objected when Heather reiterated it to her. "I even built your bike!"

Heather laughed nervously. "I don't know what she's talking about."

I narrowed my eyes. "Yes, you do. You've treated Lindsay like crap for the last five weeks while making her do everything to help you win. Rightfully, Lindsay should've come in first, not you."

Heather ignored me and said to Lindsay "You should just leave with your dignity intact. It will make you seem much more cuter in the instant replays."

"But we were going to the final three together!" Lindsay said.

"Guess we're not!"

"Aren't you even sad? We're BFFs!"

"Yeah, for the contest. I mean, it's not like we're going to be best friends for life or anything."

Lindsay gasped. "I can't believe you just said that! But we pinky swore! You mean-" Her blue eyes narrowed. "I've been helping you all this time and you didn't even like me?"

"Truth?" Heather asked. Lindsay nodded. "Not really, no. What? We're not here to make friends. We're here to become celebrities, remember?"

"That's cold." Duncan commented.

"Oh, like you're such a team player!" Heather retorted. "All you do is go around scaring the crap out of everyone."

"At least I'm straight with people!"

"Yeah," I agreed, "And at least he doesn't blame everyone else for just about everything. You're not even strategic when you don't like someone!"

"Whatever." Heather said coolly. "I have invincibility. No one can touch me."

"This week." Gwen muttered.

"You really are mean!" Lindsay said, suddenly sounding angry. "And all that bad stuff people say about you is true. Like how you're a two-faced, backstabbing, lying little-" I honestly couldn't decipher everything Lindsay said after that. It was just a long string of swears, and as she did it, she flipped Heather the bird.

"I always told them they were wrong." Lindsay continued. "I stood up for you, because I thought we were BFFs! But they're right! You really are a two-faced, backstabbing, lying little-" She said the exact same thing she'd said the last time. "And guess what? I don't wanna be BFFs anymore! I'd rather spend the days staring at Owen's butt than shopping with you! And PS: Your shoes are tacky!"

That made us all laugh and Heather scowl. "Oh, go jump in the piranha pool!" she snapped.

I rolled my eyes at her, but gave Lindsay a big hug. "You know something? You chewing Heather out is almost worth getting kicked off. At least we'll have something to talk about on the Boat of Losers."

At that moment, Izzy's bike rode past, Leshawna screaming "Get me off of this thing!" She and Izzy landed in the water.

Finally, it was sunset, and that meant the Boat of Losers was here to take Lindsay and I home.

Lindsay said her goodbyes first, getting names wrong. "Thanks for all your support, Greta." she said to Gwen, and to Leshawna "I love you, Lequisha."

Leshawna gave her a hug. "See you, girlfriend. If if makes you feel better, we would've kept you on."

"Really? Thanks. Kick Heather's butt for me."

While Lindsay continued her goodbyes to everyone else, I said goodbye to Gwen, and hugged Leshawna too. Out of all the Screaming Gophers, I'd been closest to her. "I'll miss you guys. Good luck!"

I said my goodbyes to Izzy, Duncan and Owen. Then I pulled DJ close and kissed him on the lips.

"I think I'll miss you the most." I whispered.

Finally, I hugged Geoff. "Win for us." I whispered.

Geoff smiled at me. "I'll see you in three weeks, sis. Let Bridgette know I'll see her soon, okay?"

I nodded.

Lindsay was saying her last goodbye. "Good luck, Heather. I hope you get everything your karma owes you." she said with her usual sweet smile. "Okay, I'm ready." She held her head high and stepped into the boat.

I smiled at Heather and said sweetly "Bye, Heather. I'd say good luck, but I'd be lying."

And with that, the boat sped away. I'd lost my chance at the hundred grand, but I'd had fun, and I'd met some great people, even if they weren't all wonderful. I'd made new friends, was in a relationship, and best of all, losing didn't mean a total loss.

The Boat of Losers didn't take us home. It took us to a little part of the island where there was a huge mansion called Playa Des Losers. Our bags were taken up there to a bedroom, and there we would stay until the finale.

All the other contestants were staying there, from Ezekiel to Bridgette (who was now completely free of skunk spray).

Maybe, just maybe, the next few weeks would be fun.

**I always planned to have Elle leave here. But her story and her run on Total Drama is far from over. She is going to have a role in TDA and TDWT. After all, who else is going to suspect unfair play when Bridgette and Leshawna get screwed over in TDWT? Please review!**


	20. Chapter 20: Losers in the Limelight

**Okay, so let's see what's going on. Thank you for reviewing, DarkQueenOfWonderland, Ali6132 (Actually, she is in All-Stars, that's written, and wow, $3? Lucky) and the guest reviewer (trust me, she will not like him).**

My first night at Playa Des Losers was the perfect balm for getting kicked off. At first, everyone surrounded Lindsay, congratulating her. We were able to watch everything going on at Camp Wawanakwa, and so everyone heard what Lindsay had said to Heather, and we all agreed – it was her best moment.

But after that was over, everyone greeted both of us, talking superfast about everything. I even greeted Courtney happily, and I hugged Bridgette and Beth.

The next few days were blissful, except for the fact that I missed most of the people still on the show. Most. I didn't miss Heather one bit, and I didn't really miss Duncan – but I missed everyone else. And despite myself, I actually hoped Heather would come here next, because much as I was glad to be away from her, I wanted her to win even less.

I actually didn't see Harold at all. Courtney explained that he had actually rigged the votes to eliminate her back after Chef's boot camp, and she was furious. I suspected Harold was hiding somewhere around, but too scared to come out, because when Courtney found him, she'd kill him.

The next person to arrive was DJ. The challenge was to watch a horror movie, and then survive one. Chef dressed up as "the psycho killer with a chainsaw and a hook" and stalked the campers. You got points for confronting the killer. Owen and Izzy broke all the rules of horror movies by going out into the woods and then making out, and as a result, were the first to lose. It didn't help that Owen pushed Izzy in front of him when they first found the killer. She was pretty mad at him, but then again, Owen tried to make it up to her in the next episode. Maybe she'd forgive him in time – they seemed to have a cute mutual crush.

Heather had gone off to the showers, and this was where DJ lost out. He didn't see the killer, but lost because he freaked out at the sight of Heather wearing a face mask and a towel while shaving her legs. Chris kicked him off by default, since he lost without confronting the killer at all. As for Gwen, she won immunity by being the only one to meet up with the real psycho and kicking him in the face several times.

While I was sad that DJ got kicked off, it was nice to be with him again. Katie and Sadie gushed to me about how much of a cute couple we made, even. What was also nice was that we didn't have to be romantic all the time. We could just hang out, be friends. But as a couple, we could still kiss and hug, and those moments were the best for me.

The next person to arrive was Izzy. The campers had had to hunt animals (I did have the pleasure of seeing Izzy accidentally shoot a tranquilizer dart at Heather), and Gwen won invincibility again with her duck. Izzy didn't get her animal, and arrived at Playa Des Losers that night. Thankfully, I didn't have to share a room with her again. She got weirder every day.

In a weird twist of fate, the campers voted off Geoff next, just for being nice and the popularity that it brought him. Gwen put it perfectly when she asked if everyone was crazy for voting him off: "Geoff is the nicest guy in the world!"

Yeah, but being the sister of "the nicest guy in the world" wasn't as fun as it sounded when he spent the next three days making out with one of my closest friends at the Playa. No, seriously, he and Bridgette did almost nothing else.

Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating. Geoff still did sometimes hang out with the guys and I still got to talk to Bridgette, but they still spent the majority of the time sitting in the spa, making out.

I actually started to spend some time with Ezekiel, who hung around them a lot. Mainly because I found out he had a crush on Bridgette. "She's so sweet and pretty." he sighed.

"Zeke, I hate to tell you, but I think you lost her on your first day." I sighed.

"How come, eh?" asked Ezekiel.

"Geoff told me you made sexist remarks about girls. It's why you got kicked off first. Besides, you have to respect that she's in a relationship now. Just try to be friends with her. Say hi, smile at her, you know, those kinds of things. I know you were homeschooled and haven't socialized with our age group much, but just try."

Then, before the next player came to join us, we were visited by Chris. Apparently, he'd wanted to do an episode on us, and we would get to choose who left next.

I was sitting at the minibar in the shallow part of the pool with Katie, Sadie and Noah at the time. Although I didn't particularly like them, they were okay to hang out with, and I didn't hate them or anything. I liked them well enough.

Katie and Sadie were sighing over Justin. "He is so cute!" sighed Sadie, falling into the pool and accidentally splashing us.

"Get my shirt wet, why don't you." Noah deadpanned. He was just as expressionless as he'd been on the island.

"Sorry, Noah." giggled Sadie. "You guys should come in, it's so nice!" Suddenly, she gave a squeal. "Ow! Something bit me!"

Katie gasped and immediately drew her knees up to the stool she was sitting on. "Was it a shark?"

"Sharks don't swim in chlorinated water, braniac." Noah said.

"Noah's right." Sadie said, calming down and climbing back onto her stool.

"If it wasn't a shark, what was it?" Katie wondered.

We got our answer as Izzy surfaced. "Sorry about that!" she laughed. "I just had the urge to bite something. Have you ever felt that, like you just have to sink your teeth into something? Maybe that's how sharks feel, huh? Okay, bye!"

I sighed. "There is something really weird about that girl."

"You don't say." Noah muttered.

Soon, the camera was on me. First, Katie and Sadie were asked their questions, they talked about how hard Total Drama had been for them and how they'd had their first major fight and even been separated for the first time. Then it was my turn.

"To be honest, I don't miss the challenges, but I miss my friends." I said. "I'm glad to be here, though. It's great to hang out with everyone again...although I'll be glad when we're not all living together because then maybe Geoff and Bridgette won't have their lips locked on each other 24-7. How would I describe it one sentence? Mixed socializing, downright horrible accomodation, scared shitless during challenges."

I heard Lindsay talking in her interview. She was sitting on Tyler's lap, next to the pool. "I _love _being a loser! This is so much more my style. If I had known how fab this place was, I would've gotten my butt kicked off in the first episode. Plus, now Tyler and I could hang out." She broke off to kiss him, but then asked "Which one's Tyler?" She kissed him and she didn't even know he was Tyler? I mean, later on, she asked an Eskimo if they were Tyler when they were dropped on Courtney's head for some reason.

Well, Courtney was going on about how she should be in the final five. "I'm in the middle of filing a law suit for wrongful termination of competiton. These people are witnesses!"

"I didn't see a thing, man." Trent argued.

"You got me." added DJ.

"Must've missed that episode." Noah said.

"I don't remember that." I said blankly.

"What's she talking about?" Katie asked Sadie.

"Didn't see it, don't care." finished Eva.

"You all know what happened!" insisted Courtney.

Ezekiel tried to tell Courtney to give us a break – it wasn't like she'd been kicked off first, and that was when Lindsay told her that "You would've just been kicked off in another episode. No one liked you that much."

And then Courtney said "That is so not true! Everyone likes me! I used to be a CIT!" And when a coconut fell on her head and she snapped that it wasn't geographically correct, she ended up having a snowdrift and an Eskimo fall on her head instead.

That's when Lindsay asked it "Are you Tyler?"

I was still sitting at the minibar with Noah (and Trent) when they were asked questions.

"Did I get anything out of this experience?" Noah said. "No. It was completely and totally uneventful."

"He kissed a guy!" Izzy announced, popping out of the water. She'd told me about how, during the Awake-A-Thon, Noah had fallen asleep and woke up, finding himself accidentally kissing Cody's ear.

"No I didn't!" snapped Noah, actually breaking his monotone for once.

"Yes, you did." Izzy says.

"Didn't!"

"Diiiid!" sang Izzy.

"Did! Not!"

"Did, did, did, did, did, did, did, did, did, did, did, did, did!" sang Izzy. I started to giggle.

"I can break this tie." Trent offered. "He totally did."

"Omigosh, omigosh!" squealed Lindsay. "I got a letter from my sister that said there's a picture of me in _Star Stalker _magazine, eeee!"

Katie and Sadie squealed too. "Eeeee." Noah imitated. "Congratulations, you just peaked. It's all downhill from here, honey."

But Chris wasn't just visiting to show the world what we were doing. He also wanted to hear about what we thought of the campers.

First, he asked everyone about Heather. Eva said angrily that it was all Heather's fault she was there. "She's a scum-sucking, backstabbing witch and I'm gonna enjoy watching her go down!"

Izzy said she thought Heather was a "total psycho". Courtney said she thought Heather was a formidable competitor, but didn't approve of her tactics.

I didn't exactly hear what Harold said, but Courtney obviously did, because she found him hiding in the bushes and started attacking him.

"Heather is the meanest girl I've ever known of, fictional or real, outside of Regina George from _Mean Girls._" was my opinion.

Trent just said that he hoped he never met anyone like Heather again, and Lindsay simply said she was mean. "Like, really mean."

Ezekiel, Katie and Sadie agreed that she was really bossy. Beth said that "Telling her off was the best moment of my life!"

"If none of us even like her, how did Heather get into the final five?" Sadie asked.

"Cause she's a conniving backstabbing little witch, that's why!" Eva yelled.

Courtney whispered to the camera that she wanted Duncan to win. "Don't tell the others, though, okay?" But we all heard what she said.

"Oh, we already know." Izzy said. "You were all over him."

"Telling him how awesome he was for hugging his worst fear was a major sign." I agreed.

"My golden lab drools less over a rib eye steak." Noah told her.

"And...we eavesdropped again." Lindsay finished.

My turn on Duncan. "No way do I want him to win." I said firmly. "Way too mean. Was playing all those pranks on Harold really necessary? Or tying Geoff to a tree upside down all night for not voting for Bridgette? Or getting everyone picked off for the horror movie challenge so he could confront the killer himself? I mean, seriously, that's something Heather would do!"

Harold, predictably, hated Duncan for all the pranks. DJ was impressed with how tough Duncan was. Bridgette said Duncan wasn't all tough. "Courtney told me he has a sweet side to him."

Lindsay thought he was cruel.

Then it was Owen's turn. Katie thought he was fun, although she and Sadie agreed that he was mean during the dodgeball game. He had thrown both of them out.

Trent, as we knew, wanted Gwen to win.

"She's smart," Courtney admitted. "But she's not exactly a team player. I was a team player! It should be me!"

I had had just about enough of Courtney's whining, and was about to tell her so, but luckily, Noah spoke first. "You're here. You lost. Get over it."

I tried to calm down.

"I think Gwen's awesome." I said. "She's a bit distant sometimes, but she's a great friend and a good player."

Lindsay thought Gwen was a bit harsh, but gave her kudos for the time she put Harold's red ant farm in Heather's bed. Bridgette thought Gwen was really cool.

Then it was Leshawna's turn. Harold said that she was his soul mate. Courtney couldn't think of anything bad about her. Sadie said she was "so fetch", and Katie said she had the best style.

"I want Leshawna to win." I said. "I mean, really no one else deserves it, I mean, just look at what she's gone through, and she's exacted the best revenge on Heather for everything."

Noah gave her kudos for being the one who actually locked Heather in the fridge, even though it was my idea.

That evening, we were all sitting around the pool.

"So, who do you guys wanna win if you could vote?" DJ asked. I was sitting with him, and he had an arm around me.

"Can I pick Sadie?" asked Katie.

"Aw, you'd vote for me and not you?" Sadie said.

"Duh, you can't vote for yourself, that's tacky!"

"Okay, I'll vote for you to win, and you vote for me to win!"

"Girls?" Courtney said. "You have to be in the final five to get a vote, remember?"

Cody wanted Gwen to win, in spite of the fact that he had a crush on her and she shot him down big time. "Gwen is my dream girl. I'm just not her dream guy. But as long as she's happy, hey, I'm happy." That was very sweet of him, although he still annoyed me a bit.

"I can't decide between Leshawna and Gwen." Bridgette stated. "They're both really cool."

"Leshawna, definitely." Harold said dreamily.

"But you'd vote for Duncan, right?" Courtney said, glaring at him.

"Why would I do that?"

"Because if you don't, I'm going to post all of your little love letters to Leshawna on the internet!"

"Fine, whatever. I'll vote for Duncan. Not!"

"I think Owen should win!" Beth said with a goofy smile. Geoff agreed with her.

But finally, after we'd all said who we wanted to win, Chris told us the twist. It was our call who joined us at Playa Des Losers this week. "Katie and Sadie, since you share a brain, I'll ask you both. Who would you like to vote for?"

"Oh, I miss Leshawna the most!" cried Sadie. _Ding!_

"It would be so much fun to have her here!" Katie added. "Definitely Leshawna!" _Ding!_

We all gasped, and Courtney spoke up. "Why are you voting her off? If you like Leshawna-" _Ding! "_-leave her in!"

"That's three votes for Leshawna!" Chris announced. Courtney hadn't meant to vote for her, but she had anyway.

"You're just voting off my girlfriend to spite me!" Harold told her off.

Lindsay took her turn. "Don't worry," she said, "I'm not gonna vote for Leshawna." _Ding!  
_"Lindsay!" DJ and I snapped at the same time.

Lindsay misunderstood. "No, you can't vote for me, you have to vote for someone who's in the final five, like Leshawna!" _Ding!_

"Okay, come on, guys!" Izzy said. "NO ONE SAY LESHAWNA!" _Ding! _Izzy clapped her hands over her mouth.

Chris counted this random parrot squawking "Leshawna" as a vote, as he did when Trent argued.

"Chris, that was a parrot. It doesn't even know who Leshawna _is_."

I still managed to get in one vote by saying "I'm in no hurry to see her again, but I vote Heather." But it made no difference. Leshawna was out of the game!

**I know that chapter was long, but I've still got the finale and special before this part of the story is done. Then I'll be moving on to my special treat ep of TDA...and some others, of course. If you can guess what movie genre (or type, it's not really a genre) I'll be using, you get a cookie. Clue: Think _Nightmare on Elm Street, Psycho, Cape Fear, Peter Pan. _What do all of these have in common? And no, it's not horror, TDA did that one. Please review!**


	21. Chapter 21: Not The Very Last Chapter

**Finale time coming up! And no, I don't own "The Bitch Song", Bowling For Soup does. But seriously, if you haven't already, check out the song. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 (btw, I wrote this before you suggested the song for Courtney...and no, but considering the films I mentioned, slasher was a good guess), StarHeartSpecials (good guess, but there aren't any hooks in _Psycho, _and _Nightmare _is more razors), DarkQueenOfWonderland (yeah, she's one of the few people that I actually want to see win...a lot of people should return, but in winning...there's no one else I want to see more) and The Girl who is FandomStruck (again, good guess, but not right). I'll give you another clue to the films. There was an adaptation of _Charlie and The Chocolate Factory _in 2005. Unlike most movies like this, it was based on the book, not the other adaptation. I hope this hint doesn't sound as confusing as I think...if it doesn't, I think it might be an easy guess.**

For the next week, two more people arrived at Playa Des Losers. Duncan came back first. Courtney inititally didn't talk to him, but within a few hours they were making out between arguments.

Soon, the end was approaching. Two days before the finale, Heather arrived, looking furious. We'd all seen her lose the dare challenge, courtesy of the dare Lindsay had given to be used, in fact. After locking Heather in the fridge, Heather had threatened to cut off Lindsay's hair at one point. The dare Lindsay sent in was to have Chef shave the person's head.

Heather refused the dare, but the razor accidentally shaved most of her hair anyway. She got sent a wig that looked like her regular hair and had what was left of her real hair shaved off so it grew back at the same length, but hey, she still got what was coming to her.

So only Gwen and Owen were left, and two days later, we were all brought back to Wawanakwa to watch them compete in the finale.

We had to sit in the stalls, the side representing who we wanted to win. I sat on Gwen's side with Leshawna, Eva, Trent, DJ, Katie, Sadie, Justin, Bridgette, Lindsay and Cody. I mean, Owen was cool and all, but Gwen was my friend.

Everyone else sat on Owen's side.

"Nice rug." Gwen teased Heather.

"Oh, bite me." Heather retorted. She slapped Izzy's hand away from her. "Stop touching my hair, crazy girl!"

"It's not even your hair!" I called out. Heather shot a glare at me.

No, seriously, what had happened to me over the last few weeks? I swear, when I arrived at camp, I was much nicer than I was now. I still sighed and rolled my eyes, but I resolved to be nice. I swear, Heather made me less nice than I wanted to be. Whenever I was around her, I just found myself making snarky or sarcastic remarks.

Before the challenge started, the finalists had to tell us what they would do with the money, and why they deserved it.

"Well, I guess I'm pretty proud of getting this far." Gwen began. "I guess that if I can survive here, maybe the rest of high school won't be so bad." Izzy burst out laughing, and Gwen continued "I'm always a girl of my word, and I did promise to split my money with Owen, but that would still leave me a ton of cash. I guess I'd travel the world and then go to university to study artistry."

"Yeah!" Leshawna cheered. "Girlfriend's got some goals!"

"Very cool." added Trent.

Owen only had one thing he wanted to do with the money. "I'd throw the biggest hugest sickest party ever, and invite everyone here! Yeah!"

Everyone on Owen's team cheered, and I debated swapping sides when Justin, Bridgette, DJ, Katie and Sadie all swapped. I mean, I loved parties, but I really wanted to support Gwen too. Which was more tempting?

I sighed and sent an apologetic look Gwen's way as I sat down on Owen's side next to DJ.

"At least not all of you are total sellouts." Gwen muttered. I felt bad, but what could I do? Apart from switch sides. But I really loved parties!

"Oh, and I forgot!" added Owen. "It'll be on a yacht!"

Lindsay switched sides, too.

The challenge involved Gwen and Owen both wearing animal hats – Gwen had a chicken hat and Owen had a cow hat. Then they would shimmy up a pole and grab a flag. Then they would cross a gorge under which were sharks, carrying an eagle egg from a next and placing it in the nest on the other side. Then it was a long-distance run to the finish line.

"Go Owen!" yelled Geoff. "We want a party!"

"You're gonna get one!" Owen yelled back.

We all cheered for Owen, while Leshawna and Trent cheered for Gwen. Actually, I saw Leshawna nudge Eva, who just said flatly "I don't cheer."

Trent ran alongside Gwen for the whole race, although she was pretty cold towards him. Half of Owen's team ran with him and helped. But I felt guilty enough for switching sides, so I decided not to help him like Heather and a bunch of others were doing.

I did watch the two of them walk across the planks of wood on the gorge, but just about everyone did. And not only that, they had angry eagle parents chasing them.

"Oh snap, that is messed up!" Duncan started laughing.

"What, you mean you like watching this?" Courtney said incredulously. "They could die!"

"Aw, mellow your yellow, babe, this is awesome TV." Duncan said casually.

"Why would I want to watch Gwen and Owen risk their lives?"

"This is life at it's most raw. Check out 'Elvis' here with his guitar. One misstep – his girlfriend is shark bait. Now that would make for an interesting song." It was true that Trent looked terrified.

At that moment, Courtney suddenly pulled Duncan into a heated kiss. Finally, they broke away and Courtney said "You're still not my type."

"You make me sick." Duncan replied. They kissed again, making me laugh. I didn't even like Duncan or Courtney, yet together, they were totally hilarious to watch! Actually, I resolved to find my old Bowling For Soup CD and send the music for _The Bitch Song _to Duncan. What a great song for them. I mean, seriously, one of the lines is "you make me sick, but don't ever go away". Maybe I could get Owen to have it played at his party and dedicated to Courtney...assuming he won, of course.

"You can do it, Gwen!" Trent called. "You're the most awesome girl I've ever met! In fact, I was thinking, I think I lov-"

"Okay, I can't deal with distractions now, Trent!" Gwen interrupted.

"Then you're gonna hate this!" Heather yelled, and with that she tore Justin's shirt off, mesmerizing every girl around (and Owen). Trent had to step in front of Justin to get either finalist to focus.

It looked like Gwen was going to win, especially when Owen complained of stomach pains and ran for the outhouse.

"What is going on here?" Heather demanded.

I gave her a suspicious stare. "What did you do?"

Heather scowled. "Okay, I might have left Gwen a cupcake. I can't believe it – Owen must've eaten it instead! How could this have happened?"

I laughed at her, realizing what she laced the cupcake with. "And you realize that won't help you win, right? Loser!"

"Bigger loser!" Heather yelled after me. I didn't really care, though. Heather wanted to win more than I did.

It was Izzy who made the plan. She made brownies, while Lindsay grabbed an industrial fan, and they blew the scent of the brownies towards Owen. That caused him to run faster than ever before, and then...win, knocking over Izzy in the process. Heather's wig fell off, and when she yelled at us, Leshawna finally decided enough was enough and tossed her into the confessional outhouse (which Owen had used for its real purpose), blocking the door so she was stuck in there.

I gave Leshawna the thumbs up as she walked back to her place.

We all cheered, even Izzy, who was squashed for a moment.

Trent finally got Gwen to say she'd go out with him, and finally, we all went to the last bonfire ceremony. Owen was given his cheque, and a marshmallow.

"Yeah, baby!" Owen grinned. "What can I say, Chris? I'm just so psyched. This is just so..."

"Awesome?" all twenty-two of us chorused.

"Yes! Party next week, everyone!"

Gwen still seemed happy enough.

At the end of the ceremony, Geoff called out "Yo, Owen! Know what it's time for?"

Owen eyed Chris wickedly.

Chris yelled out as he was carried down the dock by Owen, Duncan and Geoff. "Seriously, guys, my hair!" We finally got to watch, as the three of them tossed Chris into the water.

"I've been wanting to do that all summer!" Chef said. "How do you like that, pretty boy? Huh?"

"Oh, Chef..." sang Geoff.

"You're next, dude!" Owen finished, and all three of them chased him.

We were back to Playa Des Losers for a couple more days, but I expected there to be no more drama.

Oh, I should've known better.

**The special next! I know Elle is underdeveloped, but what can I do to improve her?**


	22. Chapter 22: Wait, This Isn't The End?

**OK, let's get to this. Oh, and three guesses who made the fan sites and first two don't count. Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 (definitely, Gwen should've won, but her ending feels like a cop-out, so I went with Owen's).**

Now that there were no more challenges, I actually felt no need to create an image on TV. I could go back to being myself. Not that I'd ever been someone different, but something had always been off while I was stressed out.

When I checked the Internet, I found everyone had fan sites and labels. Mine was "The Sweetheart With A Dark Side".

"_Why does she have a dark side, you may ask?"_ the site read. "_Elle is sweet to everyone she meets, initially, but push her too far and she'll have it in for you. Heather learned the hard way that bossing everyone around is bound to put you in the fridge. All Elle's plan. And if she doesn't like someone, she can sabotage from the inside...just watch how she continues to talk to Beth until she backed out of Heather's alliance! But unlike Heather, who would do the same, Elle is a true sweetheart. Just look at how she tries to get along with both teams, votes off mean people before weak people, and best of all, she's dating fellow sweetheart DJ!"_

Everyone had labels, and there were fansites done all by the same person. Cody's fansite, labelled "The Sweet Geek" was a little more elaborate, and had several links to other fan sites.

The person making the sites signed herself off as "Obsessed Uber-Fan". She had that right! She'd made fan pairing sites, too, called "Duncney" (Duncan/Courtney), "Gwent" (Trent/Gwen), "Ozzy" (Owen/Izzy), "Gidgette" (Geoff/Bridgette) and some others. She'd even made a "Delle" (DJ/Me) site! There was even one for Leshawna and Harold, although Leshawna finally told him that she'd decided she didn't want to date him, but she still wanted to be his friend. Harold was disappointed, but she let him admire her, while he knew she would never show the same feelings for him. He seemed happy enough to at least be her friend, hoping to win her over later.

Things at the Playa were just as they always were. Sadie and Katie flattered Justin repeatedly, Geoff made out with Bridgette more and more, we played games, etc. Owen decided that he was completely in love with Izzy. Lindsay and Beth stuck together, chatting. When Tyler nearly drowned in the pool, DJ attempted to save him, but due to his fear of water, it was Tyler who rescued him. Duncan showed off, trying to impress Courtney, but she was in a mood because she lost her law suit for the show booting her early. At one point, Leshawna drew a smiley face on Heather's bald head.

"Next time, draw a skull and crossbones." I suggested. "Wanna know why it fits?"

"Because Heather is toxic?" Leshawna grinned, guessing the punchline. We both burst out laughing, along with Gwen and Trent, who we were hanging out with.

Gwen said she couldn't wait to introduce us to her friends at home, showing us pictures. Okay, all of them looked SCARY. I mean, I thought Gwen was about as goth as you could get, but her friends were about as close to the dark side in fashion as you could get. But then again, Gwen had seemed moody the day we'd met. Maybe her friends were just as nice as she was, deep down.

After Total Drama Island, I thought I would never have to go through everything all over again. I thought wrong.

It was the day before we were all due to go home when it happened. When Chris put in an appearance and had Owen's cheque taken away, I should've guessed.

The basic idea was that Owen could do one of two things – keep the hundred grand, or risk it by taking the chance to find ONE MILLION dollars in a suitcase, hidden somewhere around the island. The camper who found it and brought it back to the dock got to keep it.

And Owen, naïve as he is, decided to go for the million. It was anyone's game – anyone could find the million. Chris promised to give us hints from the loudspeaker, too.

I saw Courtney's eyes light up at the prospect of winning, but hey, mine probably did too. Who would turn down the chance of winning a million dollars?

I had different prospects as who to team up with. DJ was already going with a bunch of the guys, and Geoff and Bridgette didn't seem to be able to keep their lips off each other long enough to notice I was there, so I went with Leshawna, Gwen and Trent. We could split the money into four lots of $250,000. It was still more than the original prize money.

Actually, Heather tried to team up with us, but we told her no. She just walked up to us and said "Hey, guys, I know that we've had our minor differences, but what do you say we team up? We're the five strongest players. Together, we'd be unstoppable."

Leshawna laughed at her, and I said "Heather, last time you talked to any of us during the competition, you tried to sabotage Gwen's chances of winning the prize money. Get lost."

She tried the same thing on just about everyone. Beth teamed up with Lindsay and Ezekiel (after telling him he had to be respectful to them), but told Heather they had enough people. She tried to talk to Geoff and Bridgette, but they didn't even seem to hear her. She probably talked to someone else, but we were searching ourselves by then.

We had no luck for most of the competition. The only notable event was when we ran into Justin. "Hey." he said. Oh wow, that smile was _so _gorgeous...

"Hey." Gwen, Leshawna and I said.

"So, uh...what areas have you guys searched through?" Justin asked.

"The beach." I began.

"And the whole western edge of the island." Gwen added.

"So don't tire those beautiful legs of yours walking over there." Leshawna finished.

"Thanks!" Justin walked off.

"Did you just give away all our secret information to _Justin?" _I heard Trent ask, finally starting to get us to snap out of it.

I sighed. "I'm just glad DJ didn't see me doing that. I like him better, but Justin _is _gorgeous. I mean, totally. Sorry, Trent."

Okay, so Chef also caught up with us and asked if we'd seen a hot air balloon, because Courtney had taken his one and brought the million with her.

As a matter of fact, I was banking on Courtney winning by that time, but she didn't. In fact, no one won. A shark swallowed the case, with only most of us close. The only ones not tying for closest were Courtney, Cody, Tyler, Noah, Eva, Katie, Sadie and Ezekiel.

"So, you lost the case." Chris stated to the rest of us. "Way to go. I didn't wanna do this, but since none of the fifteen of you officially won, you all officially tied." He began to grin. "Which means that you will have another shot at winning the million dollars!" We all cheered. "In Season Two!"

I gasped. "Another season? No way, Chris. No. Freaking. Way."

"Forget this." Duncan agreed. "I didn't agree to Season Two."

"Actually, you did." Chris reminded us. "It's called the fine print. Read it, live it, love it!"

"I HATE the fine print!" Gwen snapped.

Everyone else didn't have to compete, but they'd have to watch the rest of us compete. Courtney was furious that she didn't get her chance, but it couldn't be helped.

We had two days to pack and report to the next location for the next season – Total Drama Action!

"For our two days at home, will you please hang out with me for once?" I begged Geoff. "Ever since the end of the season, you haven't taken your eyes off Bridgette. I know she's your girlfriend, but I'm your sister."

"Elle, you're not jealous of her?" Geoff said. "Of course I'll still hang out with you. But I'm going to spend a lot ot time with Bridge."

I laughed. "I'm not jealous of her. Besides, I'd count her as a friend. Just make sure you two don't spend every waking minute together and I'll be happy. Besides, we'll all be living together yet again next season."

"And this time, I'll win!" Geoff said.

I knew he wasn't serious, but it didn't stop me from saying "Not if I win it!"

**If only Geoff knew...he'll be kicked off first and never return. At least this time, he won't lose with his girlfriend still in the game...sorry, Season Three flashbacks – if you haven't seen it, Bridgette's chances were ruined early on.**


	23. Chapter 23: Monster Start

**Lights, camera...DRAMA! Thanks for reviewing, Quietninjagirl and Ali6132 (I think it's just because it IS Cody. She did say she had an online blog called "I Dream Of Cody", but it's just that she can't keep her obsession under control, so it ended up a bit too elaborate, probably without her even realizing it).**

Two days later, an old bus dropped fifteen of us off in front of an old movie lot.

Actually, a lot had changed in a few days. Heather had another wig. Beth had her braces off and turned out to have a great smile. Justin seemed more talkative.

"Where IS everybody?" Leshawna wondered.

"Uh...maybe we got off at the wrong stop?" Gwen failed majorly at a real explanation, but still, she tried.

"That broken-down bus only had one stop." Justin pointed out.

"Chris is probably messing with us." I sighed. "Again. Did you really expect him to come up okay this time?"

"I'm not hanging around here." Heather snapped.

"You're gonna give up the chance at a million big ones?" Leshawna laughed. "That's a lot of hair weaves."

"Don't forget the skull and crossbones idea." I whispered to her, and she grinned and laughed again.

"Will you two stop doing that?" Heather snapped. "It's creepy."

"Oh, I'm sorry if we find your bare scalp hilarious, Queen Manipulator." I mocked. "Anyway, that comment aside, I think we could get along great this season, as long as you stop manipulating people. Why not?"

Heather simply glared at me.

"Hon, that one's a lost cause." Leshawna muttered to me. "Let it go."

"She's strong – we need her on our side." I muttered back. "Besides, keep your friends close, and your enemies closer."

Leshawna grinned and nodded.

"The money's the reason we all put up with Chris." Beth said, coming back to the topic of the money. As she did so, she gave us all a flash of her now-perfect teeth.

"Hot as ever." Justin said as he looked at Beth, but I wasn't sure he was even seeing her. He had that look he got when he was admiring himself during the first challenge on the island.

"Justin, can I ask you a question?" I said sweetly. "Were you talking to Beth, or were you talking to yourself?"

Justin shrugged and said quickly "Does it matter?"

I shrugged back. "I guess not. I'll just assume it was Beth because-" and I smiled at the smaller girl, "You look great without your braces."

The other girls all agreed with me. "You are totally on your way to looking the part of my new BFF!" Lindsay squealed. "That's my new Best French Friend. I am so moving to France when I win."

"My mom said the world would totally open up when I got my braces off! She was right!" Beth said excitedly. "I'm going to France!" Both girls jumped up and down.

At that moment, Chris finally decided to show up and took us on a tour of the movie lot.

Owen looked out the back as Chris drove away from the gate. "Izzy, run!" She wasn't on.

Izzy ignored him, whistling nonchalantly. Owen gave a sigh. "I mean Kaleidoscope!"

Izzy immediately reacted. "No one leaves E-Scope behind!" She ran, and caught up with the bus easily enough.

We were only spending six weeks here. Again, we'd be divided into teams. Our confessional would be in the makeup trailer, since we didn't have an outhouse. There was a tent where Chef would serve our meals, and then after each elimination challenge, the losing team would go to the awards ceremony, and the loser would be the one who did NOT receive a gilded Chris figurine. Yeah, some challenges would be reward only – yay!

I went straight to the confessionals after that. "Okay, so I thought we'd have a hard time on the island. But this is a movie lot! It's in the city! I was sure it would have better conditions than the camp. Well, okay, this confessional is better. But it feels like a rehash of the island."

We were driven through a set, which was supposed to be of a monster movie. And that was where our first challenge took place. A huge animatronic monster would come after us (controlled by Chef).

At the first sound of the monster, DJ screamed and I clung onto him, half in fear, and half in comfort. In fact, we held each other close.

The challenge was to get to the trailers we'd be staying in without the monster catching us. Everyone was throwing everyone else out of the way, even nice-guy Trent.

I had to wait a little while for DJ to completely calm down, but once he did, I grabbed his hand and said "Come on, let's go! Everyone else is ahead."

We even ran past Geoff and Bridgette, who weren't paying any attention to the challenge and were – what else? – making out.

"Hey, you two, get a room!" I called out. "More importantly, get to the trailers and make out there before the monster finds you!" I don't think they even heard me. They didn't look up, anyway, so I just kept running.

"I don't think this is the kind of action Chris had in mind!" I heard Duncan call out. Obviously, he'd found them.

It took a fairly long time for the monster to find me or DJ, but we were nowhere near the trailers. By that time, we were with Gwen, Trent and Beth.

"Everyone, follow me!" called out Trent. We all ran into a room...but it was just a fake set, like everything else. The monster dropped all of us into a bouncy castle, where the rest of the cast was.

"I'm coming, Lindsay!" Beth called out to her new best friend.

Geoff, Bridgette, Izzy, Justin, Leshawna and Harold were already in the castle, but that was it. Duncan was caught, but that was all, and all of us were left in the bouncy castle all night.

We were woken up by a lowered speaker blaring out a fanfare.

Owen finally freed us, just as the monster put down someone who we hadn't noticed was gone.

"Thanks for the date, baby!" Izzy called as the monster lowered her to the ground. "Don't ever leave me! Cause I'd find you!" Okay...she claimed she'd gone on a date with the monster. An animatronic creature.

The monster also squashed one of our trailers, but that was it. But we still had another challenge – a reward challenge. It was boys vs girls. Whoever won got to choose the trailer they stayed in.

First, Owen ate all the food in the craft tent – the problem was, it was all foam core and wax, as Chris told him afterwards. But Owen did find the trailer key everyone was supposed to be looking for.

I gave my girls a sympathetic glance. It looked like we'd be sleeping in a squished trailer.

Actually, Owen chose. "I choose the squashed one. What? It has more character!"

Us girls started cheering, except the monster machine then squashed our trailer, too. "Awwww!"

Thankfully, Chef fixed the trailers.

"Okay, everyone!" Chris called out that evening. "Get a good night's sleep, because you've got a seriously early wake-up call! Call time is six am! Sleep quickly!"

We had a little disagreement in our trailer, because there were eight beds – bunks again. There were eight of us, but no one wanted to share with Heather. She demanded a bed on the east side.

"Girls!" called Bridgette. "You heard Chris, we need to be on set by six am!"

"Worried we might cut into your early morning makeout session?" Leshawna teased. She made kissing noises.

"Yes!" Bridgette said. "Kind of." She looked around to see which of us would be the most willing to share bunks with Heather. "Gwen?"

"No way!" Gwen said.

"Heather's meanness might leech down while I'm sleeping!" Lindsay said.

"Is meanness contagious?" Beth gasped. She and Lindsay wanted to share a bunk, anyway.

In the end, we all drew straws with makeup brushes. Izzy got the shortest one and had to share with Heather, while I got a top bunk and shared with Leshawna. That was cool with me, since I counted her among my closest friends on the show. In fact, I was nearly as close with her as I was with some of my home friends. Bridgette too. My other friends on the show were more casual friends, but Leshawna and Bridgette were more important than that.

Lindsay and Beth obviously shared their bunk, as did Gwen and Bridgette. Heather wasn't best pleased, but she couldn't do anything.

We had to wonder what the next day would bring, but for now, we slept.

**I'm just going to move quickly with TDA! It's my least favourite of the first three seasons. Please review!**


	24. Chapter 24: Script Mix

**Let's go! Time to pick the teams! Thanks for reviewing, Happy77123 and the guest reviewer who I assume is Ali6132 (you'll see, and yes, it is completely normal to hate Umbridge, I had several conversations with my ex-boyfriend talking about that).**

I don't really want to go through the next day. Trust me, there's no point. The challenge was alien-movie themed, and the two winners were Gwen and Trent. As such, they were going to be captains for the teams we'd be put in soon enough...although I was noticing that Trent was getting uneasy. I asked him what was wrong.

"It's Duncan." he told me. "Haven't you noticed, the stuff he's been saying is honestly made to drive Gwen away from me. And she keeps listening to him! I think he might want her – and that means getting me out of the picture."

"Why would he do that?" I asked. "He's got Courtney, and besides that, I don't think Gwen listens to him enough to break up with you for no reason. You don't think Gwen would dump you over a stupid competition?"

Trent smiled. "I know. Thanks, Elle, this was really stressing me out."

I smiled back. "Don't worry. Geoff told me that last night, he saw Duncan had a picture of Courtney underneath his pillow. He wouldn't steal Gwen from you. As if she'd let herself be stolen – she's crazy about you."

At our first awards ceremony, there were two people voted off. I voted the same way – it was Geoff and Bridgette. Everyone was getting more and more annoyed at them. Seriously, all they did was make out. And stare into each other's eyes. And make out more. Seriously, I tried to talk to Bridgette after breakfast, but she was too busy. And I didn't even get to say goodbye to Geoff because they took the Walk of Shame and caught the Lame-o-sine, still glued to each other's lips.

Oh yeah, and Heather lost her wig when it fell down a drain. No, seriously, that's what happened! She'd have to spend the whole season with her bald scalp exposed to the world.

I figure it would be easier to just skip to the next day, when Gwen and Trent picked their teams. Gwen got to pick first. "I don't know...Duncan?" They high-fived.

Trent gasped and said, obviously because he was jealous, "I choose the _beautiful_ Lindsay."

Gwen scowled and retorted "Because I like to keep things _cool_, I pick Leshawna." They high-fived.

I was glad when Gwen picked me to be on her team, mainly because she also picked DJ. So I was with my friends and boyfriend. Trent also picked Justin and Beth.

Then, Leshawna whispered to Gwen "Remember, 'keep your enemies closer'."

I groaned quietly. "We have to put up with-"

"You don't mean-" Gwen began. Leshawna nodded. "Fine. We choose Heather."

Trent then chose Owen, which left us to pick Harold and Trent to have Izzy. Again, they had to call her "E-Scope" to get her to pay any attention.

Chris had no creativity with the names. Our team was the Screaming Gaffers. Trent's team was the Killer Grips.

"I don't want to be a Grip!" Beth exclaimed, looking shocked.

"Please, it's not like being called a Gaffer is anything to brag about." Heather retorted. "It sounds like something that has rabies."

Then, it was time to start the first challenge as teams. The first thing to do was to get a film set up at the top of a hill. That meant, take everything up there, including a trailer. Yes, seriously.

We each grabbed bits and pieces and ran up and down the hill with them.

"People, this is crazy inefficient!" Heather protested as we ran. She wanted to pass things up, relay style.

Gwen explained why we weren't going to do that. "If you say it, we're not doing it." None of us trusted Heather, although to be fair, that would've helped our team.

Heather said as much. "But it's a good idea!"

Harold went up to her. "I'm totally with you. Write down all your good ideas, and we can bring them up at the next team meeting." I wish I hadn't been carrying a light, because I doubled over laughing at his serious tone and nearly dropped it. _What _team meeting?

Trent was still stressing about Duncan being around Gwen. There was one point when Gwen nearly fell over backwards, carrying a light, and Trent saw Duncan steadying her, immediately getting the wrong idea. Then he intentionally used Lindsay helping him as payback.

Finally, only the trailers were left. The Grips told Owen that if he took the trailer up, he could eat the food that they claimed was up there. I could hear them all cheering.

"_Owen, Owen, he's our guy_!" chanted Beth. "_If he can't do it_...uh..._he's not our guy_!"

"How do you like that, new best friends?" Trent called down to his girlfriend and Duncan. "You gonna cry together, punk wannabes?"

I folded my arms and scowled. Okay, so Trent was scared that his girlfriend was ditching him for another guy, I got that. But I'd never heard him say something that mean. Only this morning, I'd heard him saying to Gwen that they wouldn't get too competitive.

"Not cool." Duncan snapped. "Not cool at all."

"Oh, don't worry." Gwen said. "We are taking Trent...I mean, that team, down." She looked at DJ. He was the only one who could pull the trailer up.

"No." he said. "Don't expect me to...what if the trailer slips and rolls down the hill and possibly hurts someone? What then? I couldn't handle being responsible for that!"

I rolled my eyes, looking up at him. "Come on, Deej, for our team? If you don't, the Grips'll win!"

But not matter what any of us said, DJ wouldn't pull the trailer up. We had to do without, and the Grips won the first part of the challenge.

The second part of the challenge was interesting. Before we began, Heather spoke up. "Union rules insist that you give us a lunch break!"

"Who here is part of a union?" Chris replied smugly, raising his hand. I considered raising mine (even though I wasn't), but no one else did, so I didn't.

We had to set up a scene and choose an actor, who would then do a monologue. The team that made Chef show emotion won the challenge, and the losing team would send someone home.

Our set was for a movie about a gangster who tried to go straight but couldn't, while the other team had an old lady missing her pet goat. Naturally, we made Duncan play the gangster.

"Don't typecast me!" he protested. "I don't even know if I can act."

"What, you want _Harold _to do it?" Heather pointed it out. "He's tough as butter."

"Don't expect DJ to be a tough guy." added Chef.

I turned to him. "Excuse me, but since when were you on a team, Chef? I thought you were the judge, not the player." As I spoke, I caught sight of a strangely guilty look on DJ's face, but I didn't have enough time to ask him what was wrong.

The other team had chosen Izzy, who I could hear whining that her legs were completely asleep while Lindsay did her makeup and Beth adjusted lighting.

Duncan read over the script, complaining that he couldn't memorize it and it didn't make sense anyway. Heather told him to shut up. "Just stand there and look pretty, okay, pretty boy?"

"Don't call me pretty." Duncan warned. "The last guy who called me pretty ended up looking a lot less pretty."  
I gave a sigh. "Duncan, you are nowhere near pretty." I said.

"You're hot." Gwen told him. "Okay? You look hot, sexy, stud-like."

I nudged her. "Gwen, Trent can hear you!" I hissed. He was looking over, and I could tell he'd got the wrong idea again.

I'm going to be honest here...I'm not sure what happened that day with the scripts. I think we were given the wrong ones, judging by Izzy's performance, which sounded like the gangster. But Duncan didn't do too badly.

"I've lived a good, long life..." he said the lines from memory, as the old lady, "I've loved, I've laughed, but what I miss most of all is my sweet little pet goat...baaa, baaa..."

Chef started to sniffle.

"Okay, cut!" Chris called out. "It's too much for Chef! Duncan clearly wins for best performance!"

We'd won the first challenge as a team! And the Grips were going to elimination.

I later found out that although the Grips had voted Izzy off, she wouldn't go anywhere until Chris declared E-Scope the losing team member.

Gwen talked to Trent before the elimination, and came back to the trailer looking happy enough. "Things worked out?" I asked.

"Yeah." she said. "He just seemed a bit worried about me and Duncan being friends. But I told him that I wasn't going to break up with him for that. Duncan's cool, but he's just a friend."

I shrugged. I personally didn't see why she was so friendly with Duncan, but they had some similarities. It wasn't like I could tell Gwen who to be friends with.

But I did talk to DJ. "What happened today? You couldn't pull the trailer because it might have slipped? What kind of excuse was that?"

DJ gave a sigh. "I know, I know. It sounded more reasonable in my head. I saw how the Grips' trailer looked like it was going to slip any minute, and I got all of these scary visions in my head. Some of the others were right behind Owen, and if he'd suddenly felt a moment of weakness, what could've happened? It was a pretty tall hill – I was scared I wouldn't have the stamina, and someone would definitely get hurt if I burned out." His expression was so similar to a kicked puppy that I couldn't help forgiving him.

I gave him a hug "Okay. You're forgiven. But any excuse that doesn't have a stronger explanation and you're off the show." I smiled to soften my words. "I know you won't, though."

DJ managed a smile, too, and we kissed before going back to our team.

**Hope this chapter was OK! I rewrote it a few times. Please review!**


	25. Chapter 25: Remake Cast

**Wanna guess what this new challenge to eliminate an extra person is? Let's find out.**

The next morning, I woke up feeling a bit tired. Surprisingly, my breakfast from Chef actually made me feel better – guess there was some kind of protein in it. Still, why hadn't I thought about bringing a ton of snacks with me this season?

Chris came into the crafts tent wearing a copy of Chef's hat. "It's for today's theme." he explained.

The movie genre was..."Since we're getting rid of the boring ones before we do the stuff that's more _fun," _Chris said with a smirk, "Today's genre is remakes! And you can't have a remake without new actors playing old characters."

Our challenge was to pick one member of our team to act. Then the opposing team would pick a previous player – anyone who was on the first season or who had been kicked off here – for the team's actor to act. Then, the team would have fifteen minutes to coach the team member on how the person would act, and to create a costume for them. Then, Chris would have our team interview us as the person and judge the acting. Whoever acted more like the other team's person won, and the losing team would go to elimination.

"Can I do it?" I begged my team. "Please? I'll show you I can act, just look at the Heather routine I made up!" I turned to the girl in question. "You might want to take notes."

Finally, I tossed back my blonde hair and put one hand on my hip, and put on a stuck-up tone to my voice. "Lindsay, go do this challenge for me. Beth, spy on Gwen and report back to me – she's up to something. I am so gonna win this game. I can play these losers perfectly, I mean they might as well just give me the cheque. Just look at who's left, ew! I mean, who else deserves it more than I do?"

Leshawna burst out laughing. Heather flushed, giving me a death glare.

"Nice." Duncan commented casually. "Didn't think you had it in you, blondie."

"She is gonna nail it." DJ stated.

So I got to be actor, while the rest of the team had to make my costume.

I would've been happy, except I was nervous. I was good at acting, but Heather was very easy. The other team chose an enthusiastic Lindsay as actress, and we made her play Eva. But the other team said that I had to try to act...Izzy!

So the rest of my team started to make my costume and do my makeup to make me look as much like Izzy as possible. Luckily, Izzy had left one of her tops in the cabin, so I wore one, and since her skirt looked like a palm leaf, it wasn't too hard to stitch one to my size.

The top was a little tight, since Izzy was slimmer than me, but it fit me enough to be just comfortable enough to wear for a few hours.

Meanwhile, they had to make me look more like Izzy. We didn't have any wigs, though.

"I'll curl and style her hair." Heather offered. "I've been dying to style hair." I heard her muttering under her breath. After she was done, they'd use spray-on hair dye, so I would have curly red hair by the time we had to present our team, starring me as Izzy.

Style, hmmm? Heather _attacked _my head. Now I can take a few tugs, but Heather was obviously being rougher than she needed to be.

"Is this to do with the imitation?" I managed to ask, wincing at the pulling she was doing. "No offence, Heather, honest! You could watch reruns of Total Drama Island and see what I mean!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Heather said innocently. "Stay still, would you? I can't do your hair properly if you keep squirming, and I actually want to win this challenge."

"I'd be able to keep more still if you weren't pulling my hair on purpose!" I snapped. "Quit it, and you'll find it's easier."

Heather did become a little bit gentler after that, but only by a little bit.

Finally, I was dressed just like Izzy, my hair curly and wild with the dye that made it Izzy's colour, wearing green contact lenses.

I put on a bright smile, trying to look like Izzy.

"Tone it down a little bit." Gwen instructed. "Not too bright." I obeyed. "That looks good."

"Remember, don't answer when anyone calls you Izzy." Leshawna reminded me. "She only answers to Kaleidoscope or E-Scope. If anyone calls you Izzy, just do what she does."

"You mean, whistle innocently?" I said.

"Exactly."

"And move around a lot." DJ suggested. "Izzy never stays still for long." I tried a flip, and just about did it, laughing.

"Can't you make your laugh a bit more manic than that?" Heather said, her arms folded. I tried desperately to imitate Izzy's cackle, and she nodded approvingly. "You should still work on that, though."

"And talk fast." Harold instructed. "Like, not too fast but faster than usual. And go off-track and tell random stories."

"Oh yeah, and don't take anything seriously." Duncan finished with a smirk.

Chris made our team go first, which might've been why I sucked. I know, my smile was too bright, I talked faster than I meant to, my laugh was totally off the mark, and I answered to "Izzy" until my team scowled and I whistled as an afterthought. I nailed Izzy's physical mannerisms, though, and I hoped that might be enough to help our team win. It wasn't like Lindsay could do any better, right?

Wrong. The Killer Grips had taught their actress well. They'd managed to find something blue in the costume trailer for her to wear, had used spray-on dye to make her hair dark, and put it into a ponytail. Lindsay herself seemed so disgusted by her appearance that her scowl was genuine, and although her voice was a bit too high to sound threatening and she wasn't quite as scary, she still did a good impression of Eva – forceful, strong and short-tempered.

"Screaming Gaffers, I'll see you at the awards ceremony tonight." Chris said. Heather turned to me with a wicked smirk.

I hung my head. The results were fixed from the start.

Sure enough, I was the one deprived of my gilded Chris award that night, and I walked to the Lame-o-sine, sighing.

I had an interview while I was sitting in the back, though. "I can't believe I managed to let my team down so early! I messed up worse than I've EVER done, EVER before! So am I going to some amazing place to hang out where Izzy, Geoff and Bridgette are staying too?"

No, I was going to a film studio. This season, there was an Aftermath show, and ex-contestants would be on it. As it happened, Geoff and Bridgette would be hosting, while the peanut gallery would consist of the ex-contestants. I would start as a guest, but then come in later on as part of the peanut gallery.

Bridgette greeted me at the studio. "Hi, Elle." she said. "I'm sorry you got kicked off, but I'm glad you're here. Geoff's been acting kind of weird. Ever since we got kicked off. I'm not sure what's up with him. It's not all the time, but I keep seeing these little things."

"He's always acting weird." I joked. "What's new?"

"I'm serious." Bridgette said quietly. "He's suggested all this stuff for the Aftermath show that seems kind of...sadistic. I'm really worried about him. The thing is, the producers love it, and so he keeps coming up with more and more. I've tried to ask him what's going on, but he just brushes off my concerns. Most of the time, it's nothing, but when I do ask, he doesn't even seem to realize anything's changed about him."

I frowned. "That's not like him at all. Geoff's not the best listener in Canada, but if you're that concerned, I know he'd listen to you. And it's definitely not like him to enjoy that much sadism. I guess we'll have to just knock some sense back into him before the first Aftermath."

**I know I booted Elle early, but I don't like TDA. She will get further in TDWT, though. The reason she hasn't won anything yet is because realistically, how many of you can say honestly that you think you could've gone up against players like Gwen, Heather, Duncan, Courtney and still win? Elle has her strengths and weaknesses, just like any other contestant, and she has just as much chance at winning as any of them...except for the villains, of course. Please review, as I write for the aftermath show!**

**Seriously, please review.**


	26. Chapter 26: Breaking Up-Hard To Televise

**First aftermath. This is going to be fun...thanks for reviewing, Happy77123, Elizabeth Life Stone and Ali6132.**

At first, I didn't really notice anything different about Geoff. He greeted me in the usual way and was his normal optimistic nice self. It was only after watching the next two episodes (a reward challenge for beach movies, and an elimination challenge for Westerns) when things changed. Because there was going to be an Aftermath show, Geoff and Bridgette made notes for what should come up in the show, and Geoff's notes sounded...to be honest, a bit cruel.

"Are you serious?" I asked, looking over his shoulder. "I don't know if everyone will be okay with not being allowed to lie about some things for fear of a hammer."

Geoff just laughed. "Believe me, sis, you'll just _love _what happens during your part on the show. Anyway, this is just kid stuff compared to the kind of things you go through while you're still in the competition!"

Bridgette gave him a weird look, but he didn't seem to notice. Besides, he wasn't always like that. It was just tiny little flashes of sadism. Most of the time, Geoff was the same person I'd grown up with all my life.

Only one more person arrived in the next week before the show. Ever since the episode after I left, Trent seemed to develop a weird version of OCD, where everything he did had to be done nine times. He freaked when Duncan stole a piece of breakfast off his plate because it only left eight, he counted to nine when he waved to Gwen, etc. Actually, she was his other obsession. Trent was trying as hard as he could to be supportive, and I could tell he still had some issues, since Gwen and Duncan were on the same team and were becoming increasingly close (when Courtney wasn't on the phone to her lawyers to get her back on the show, she was muttering about Gwen being a 'boyfriend-stealer'). Trent was kicked off after he started throwing challenges and letting Gwen win (on Owen's suggestion). Justin overheard Gwen talking about it and started blackmailing her – and as if that wasn't enough, he started doing that immediately after Gwen decided the relationship wasn't working out and told Trent that they needed to break up. Even then, we had to watch as he was hauled away to the Lame-o-sine, asking them to at least let him say goodbye to her.

The poor guy was so depressed, that I decided not to tell him about what Justin was up to. Besides, it was Justin's manipulation that caused Gwen to actually give the Killer Grips full permission to kick Trent off. Honestly, I didn't know what was up with that guy – it was like he was becoming the less intelligent, more good-looking male version of Heather.

The other characters that weren't players and just part of the peanut gallery, were quite fun to hang out with. Well, some of them. Eva still scared the crap out of me, and Cody annoyed me a bit, but Ezekiel was nice, if socially inept (I was trying to help him with that), and Noah's sarcasm got more amusing than annoying. I couldn't bring myself to like Courtney, but the more I talked to Katie or Sadie separately, the more I got to like them. Together, they were a bit too annoying. Tyler was nice to see again. Lindsay kept mentioning him in the show, and someone always had to remind her that he wasn't with them.

It finally got to the Aftermath show, and I was sitting in the green room between Izzy and Trent, watching the little screen that showed what was going on.

The theme music began playing, and Geoff and Bridgette were seated on a sofa in the middle of the room.

"What's going on, everyone?" Geoff greeted the audience. "Welcome to the brand new, totally off the hook show, Total Drama Action Aftermath Show!"

"We're coming to you live to dish everything Total Drama Action!" Bridgette joined in.

"This is where the _real _action is! I'm Geoff!"

"And I'm Bridgette!"

"You may remember us from such shows as Total Drama Island and it's even more thrilling sequel, Total Drama Action."

"Which we were voted off of for kissing, and lost out on a million bucks." Bridgette folded her arms, frowning.

"I still say making out makes for awesome television, but hey, we've got our own show, and this is way more fun, right?"

The studio audience cheered.

Bridgette chuckled. "Right!" She looked at the camera. "Now we get to hang with you, and we're super stoked for the new season!"

"What'd you guys think of it so far? A film lot. Totally awesome, right?"

The peanut gallery was introduced, as usual, with Tyler being last.

"There you are, dude! Would somebody please tell Lindsay?" Geoff joked.

The two of them also mentioned their guests. "Izzy, I mean Kaleidescope, will be here!" Bridgette smiled.

"And of course, Trent!" Geoff added.

"And let's not forget Elle!" Bridgette said.

"Who?" Geoff pretended to be blank (the producers made him do this cliché).

"Elle? Your sister?" Bridgette said.

"Oh, right! My sister!"

Izzy was introduced. She pointed at the screen, which now showed her in the green room. "Look, I'm on TV!" she exclaimed, accidentally spraying cracker crumbs at the camera. She picked them all off, then slipped some crackers and cheese, plus a grape, into her top and went out to talk.

She didn't do the interview conventionally, and then pointed out someone in the studio audience. "Graham Cracker! That's my old boyfriend, Graham! He got a restraining order against me last year. Remember that, Graham? So fun! Okay, we were in the courtroom, and the judge said 'you must not come within two hundred metres of the plaintiff or you will suffer the consequences of this courtroom!" She giggled. "The long distance was hard, but we made it work. By the way, Graham, you should get new blinds for your room. What are they, lead? I couldn't see a thing with my binoculars! Miss you, Graham Cracker!"

"So Izzy," Geoff said, "How did it feel to one of the first ones voted off?"

"I don't know, Geoff, how did it feel?"

"We were the first ones voted off." Bridgette reminded him.

Izzy started asking questions herself, but answered questions too.

"I think it's time we played a fun little game of Truth or Hammer!" Geoff announced. "Here's how it works. We ask you a question, and if you give the wrong answer, a huge hammer will swing down and knock you clear out of your chair!"

Izzy didn't lie, and didn't get hit. The thing was, she had an implant that gave her an electric shock whenever she lied. Well, she did nearly get hit when she said she wouldn't hurt an intern, but the hammer missed her.

They decided to bring me out next. As with Izzy, they talked about how little time I'd had on the show, but showing clips of me being on there, running from the monster, dodging Alien Chef, doing my Heather impression and dressed up as Izzy.

They called me to the stage and soon, my image in the green room appeared on the screen. I tried hard act how Izzy had, pretty calm.

"Oh! It's my turn. Wish me luck!" I zoomed out of the room and walked onto the stage, sitting down next to Izzy.

"Hey, Bridge. Hey, Geoff, who-completely-forgets-I-exist-even-though-I've-been-around-him-all-his-life-minus-ten-months!" I joked. I waved to the audience. "Hey, everyone!" And finally, the peanut gallery. "Hey, you guys."

"Hey, Elle." muttered a few of them. Courtney was too busy on her phone and Eva and Noah didn't seem bothered, but Ezekiel smiled at me, Cody tried to give me a flirtatious wink and Katie and Sadie were the only ones who verbally responded.

As they had with Izzy, they asked me what it was like to be kicked off so early and how it felt. I shrugged. "I knew I was going to be kicked off. I was horrible at pretending to be Izzy. No one can replace her!" I gave the redhead a friendly nudge and she giggled in answer. I grinned. "I can, however, do a wicked Heather impression, as you already saw! But then, I'd bet everyone who saw the last season could."

There was a few more questions, and I had to dodge the hammer when I said I didn't care about the money (hey, I didn't think about the money when I was leaving – gotta count for something, right?).

Then it was time to bring in Trent. Well, it would've been, but Geoff accidentally mentioned that Gwen had told his team to vote him off, and forgot to mention that Justin was involved.

Trent, sitting in the green room, looked horrified. "Aw, man! Are you kidding? Gwen did WHAT? This is a joke, right?" No one had told him.

Geoff was quick to point out that the Killer Grips were probably going to vote Trent off anyway, to which Bridgette immediately reminded him that Gwen was still at fault.

"Trent isn't innocent in this!" Geoff insisted. "What about the time he kissed Heather? Gwen was totally wrecked!"

"That was Heather's fault!" Bridgette pointed out. "She tricked Trent into kissing her!"

That's when Geoff started showing that weird flash of meanness he'd been getting. "Dude hardly needs to be tricked into kissing the hottest chick on the show!"

We all gasped at that.

"What?" Geoff said.

"I cannot believe you just said Heather was the hottest chick on the show!" Bridgette cried angrily.

Geoff didn't do well with covering up. He said something about how he wouldn't kiss Heather even so, and that Bridgette was just as hot, it was just that Heather had an edge.

"It's called being mean!" Bridgette shoved him so hard he fell over. "Or have you forgotten how awful she was to me first season?"

"She was like that to everyone!"

"Oh, and yet you still think she was the hottest chick on the show! Maybe you should be dating her!"

Izzy tried to distract them, and Bridgette finally said "I think it's time we took a break."

"Oh, so now you wanna break up?" Geoff snapped. "That's just great, Bridge!"

I nudged him. "Uh...I think she meant commercial break."

"We'll be right back!" finished Izzy.

We went back to Gwen and Trent. Bridgette was Team Trent, and Geoff was Team Gwen.

Izzy was making me help her take over the hosting while the others were mad at each other. "Thanks for all your texts and emails!" I said. "Keep 'em coming."

"And feel free to use ESP!" Izzy suggested. "I'm psychotic."

"I think you mean psychic." Bridgette said, smiling again.

"I'm pretty sure my therapist said psychotic." Izzy answered. "Okay. Shall we check on Trent first?"

The poor guy was in tears.

They showed a video of Gwen and Trent's relationship. That first day, when Trent smiled at Gwen the minute he saw her, when he sang a song for her in the talent show. Then there was the buried alive incident when Trent left Gwen for longer than he was meant to, and when Heather kissed him in front of Gwen, devastating both of them. But then the stress got to them, and Gwen dumped him.

Again, we saw Trent in the green room. He was still crying, but now he was singing and playing his guitar. "_You went behind my back," _he sang, "_In the worst kind of attack,_

_Now you've finally gone, I'm no longer your pawn!"_

Finally, Trent came out, holding his guitar in one hand and waving nervously with the other. He wasn't sure how things happened. "Things were going great until Gwen and I got split into different teams. Then she and Duncan started hanging out..."

"Duncan is so gonna get it." Courtney muttered jealously.

Trent also admitted that he just felt that Gwen was more important than the money, and as always, the hammer proved that he was telling the truth. He felt that Gwen was worth more than a million bucks.

Trent had to explain his number nine obsession, too. Apparently, there had been a theory about his name having five letters and Gwen's having four (Duncan suggested it), but no. Trent's grandad had given him this toy train. Just before he died one of the ten wheels fell off around that time. "My mom told me that nine was now my lucky number." I guessed that the stress had caused him to grow a dependence on the number.

A girl called Ginger went on webcam to tell Trent "I would love it if you went psycho crazy over me!"

Then some yeti (coughChrisinayeticostumecough) came on webcam to tell us how awesome Chris was and how amateurish Bridgette and Geoff were.

Then we got a call from someone who didn't like Gwen or Trent and was Team Eva...except we soon discovered that it was actually the real Eva disguising her voice.

Finally, there was another segment, called "That's Gonna Leave A Mark"...a montage of slapstck. Stuff like Beth lassoing herself, the monster stamping on Duncan, and Lindsay getting pinched by a crab.

Finally, Trent sang a beautiful heartbreak song about Gwen.

Bridgette and Geoff were moved enough to move past their argument, and the show ended with them making out.

"I guess it's a wrap!" Izzy said. "Bridgette and Geoff will see you next time!"

"If they don't get fired!" Trent murmured.

Between kisses, the hosts continued to say it, but fell over before finishing telling the audience to tune in next time for "Total. Drama-"

"ACTION!" I called out, waving like crazy.

**I know that was long, but we've still got a few more Aftermath shows coming up!**


	27. Chapter 27: He's So Mean

**Yay, we're back! Thank you for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone and Ali6132!**

Gwen was the next to arrive at the studio. After Justin had started blackmailing her, the team had voted her off.

DJ was the next to arrive. Apparently, he'd been in an alliance with Chef and quit after an attack of consience. I was happy to have him back with me, though, and although our relationship had been more about the emotion and fairly chaste on the island, I think Bridgette and Geoff started to rub off on us, because within a few days, we couldn't get enough of each other's lips.

Okay, I'll be fair. I was the one who initiated most of the kisses, BUT I did ask DJ if he was okay with it, so it's not like I was forcing anything.

Izzy went back to the show for awhile, but she was back by this time, with her imaginary friend "Explosivo".

In the next Aftermath show, I sat in the peanut gallery on one side of Trent, with Katie and Sadie flirting with him on the other side.

While Bridgette introduced everyone, suddenly, Geoff got up and went backstage. Luckily, he was back pretty early, and it was soon time for That's Gonna Leave A Mark. Like Owen's jaw breaking and Harold hitting himself in the crotch with a yo-yo.

Meanwhile, Bridgette was whispering to Geoff angrily "You can't just leave me out here alone like that on live TV!"

"I saw my hair on the monitor, Bridge, there were like seven strands out of place!" Geoff objected.

Trent had to call them back to hosting.

Next we saw Gwen and DJ in the green room. Gwen was stressing about what was going to happen to her, and DJ wanted to reassure her, but he refused to lie. Yeah, I should add here that his mom was with us, and as I'd learned, he was very, very close with his mom.

"That thing's on?" Gwen said, looking at the camera. "Hey, everyone, I'm Gwen, and I'm a nice person..."

The audience booed, and I frowned. Poor Gwen! She was right, she wasn't going to have an easy time. But I still didn't put all the blame on her.

Geoff left again to perfect his look, and then DJ was finally introduced to the stage. "Hey, everybody, what's up?"

He was actually very cheerful about keeping his integrity, even with losing the money, but Geoff introduced Truth or Hammer...sorry, make that anvil.

Look, I was okay with the hammer. So was Bridgette, but an anvil was much worse! "I am not cool with this!" she said. If we hadn't been on camera, I called out Geoff on his sadism and narcissim, which was increasing steadily.

Soon enough, we got to see all of the cool stuff DJ got behind the scenes because of his alliance with Chef, and there was a lot that showed a dark side to DJ.

"That's not fair!" cried DJ. "Don't you guys got another angle on that? Can't you-"

"We run the show here, man." Geoff told him. "That's how TV works, so no can do." DJ's mom threw a melon at him for that.

I smiled at her, but she didn't notice (I hadn't officially met her – not as DJ's girlfriend, anyway, but he'd promised to introduce me after the aftermath episode was over).

Finally, Geoff ran the clips of DJ showing that Chef made DJ say all the things that made him seem dark.

In the end, DJ also had to reveal a spice he used that made the sandwiches made on the show so great. All of us except Geoff tried one of those sandwiches. "No way. I'm seeing Chris' personal trainer, and she'll kill me if I'm even in the same room as carbs!"

"Oh, come on, bro, live a little!" I called out. "One little sandwich isn't gonna hurt!"

"I'm also seeing Justin's dermatologist." Geoff added, saying how that guy denounced this kind of food too. Bridgette told him he should lighten up, and again, I agreed.

It got worse. "You should skip these too." he told Bridgette. "You know what they say: 'a moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips'."

That made all of us gasp. Besides, it wasn't like Bridgette couldn't stand to gain weight. She had an athletic build. If anyone in the whole room could skip the sandwiches, it was Sadie, who was like twice Bridgette's size and was about triple Katie's size, too. That was really out of line

Bridgette knocked Geoff over in her fury, and we took a break. She didn't stop until she'd managed to force-feed Geoff one of the sandwiches, and he was instantly addicted.

Finally, it was time to bring Gwen out. Courtney and some of the audience booed, but DJ kindly clapped for her. I gave her a thumbs up. I refused to pick sides. Gwen and Trent were both friends of mine, and I didn't think Trent deserved to be dumped the way Gwen had dumped him, but I could understand it. And besides, she was the one coming out to a cold crowd.

And then they showed an interview with Katie and Sadie hating on Gwen.

Soon enough, Bridgette called Geoff out on brutality, again. "You think ratings are more important than relationships?"

"You kidding me, babe? Course not! Relationships rock...the ratings!"

Bridgette warned Gwen about the anvil, but Geoff just laughed about it. It was starting to get disturbing, seeing this person that looked like my brother being so horribly sadistic.

"When did you get so horrible?" Bridgette demanded.

"Network orders. Turns out horrible gets more ratings too."

Gwen said that she still liked Trent a lot, but that she liked everyone. She had a lot of liking for a lot of people, meaning in a friend way, not romantically.

"For anyone else?" Geoff said, meaning romantically. "Duncan, maybe?"

Courtney narrowed her eyes, but Gwen changed the subject, talking about how much she liked everyone, and what she did wasn't that big a deal. "People break up every day."

"Yeah, but the way yours went down – mega-harsh!" Geoff pointed out. "You didn't leave many friends behind in the game."

"Duncan didn't vote me off." Gwen pointed out.

"Only because you had your goth-girl hooks into him!" shouted Courtney from our gallery.

"Courtney, we're just friends!" Gwen protested.

To emphasize how Duncan was still Courtney's guy, Geoff even showed a clip. Gwen and Duncan were stargazing. Gwen pointed something out, and when Duncan didn't answer, she asked "What's your damage?"

Duncan just asked "You think Courtney might be looking at the stars now?"

Courtney smiled at this, but then it showed Duncan and Gwen play-wrestling, and Geoff immediately pointed out how close they were to each other. "Oh yeah, I get up that close and personal with all of my friends."

"We're just-" Gwen began again.

"Watch what you say!" Geoff reminded her, pointing to the anvil.

"-Friends." Gwen finished. The anvil stayed where it was.

"I am so calling my lawyer!" Courtney yelled.

Gwen had noticed Geoff's character downgrade, too. "What is with him?"

"I think fame has gone to his perfectly coiffed head." Bridgette said.

Things very nearly got worse (ie: dumping Gwen into a pool of pirahnas), but Bridgette protested again, and then Trent stood up for his ex-girlfriend. "Look, I threw the game, not Gwen. Wasn't her fault. Plus, everything's awesome now – I've met a ton of chicks."

"Trent, thank you!" Gwen said. A guilty look appeared on her face. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean for everything-"

"It's cool."

For the thousandth time, I wondered how a sweet guy like Trent could've possibly lost it enough to prompt Gwen to dump him. We saw another girl on WebCam had made a doll of Trent and made out with it, kissing it nine times. She was pretty scary.

Then there was one last fanmail question to answer, from 'Gidgette123' for Gwen. Geoff read it out. "_My boyfriend isn't acting like himself. He's totally turned into Captain smarmy Hollywood and doesn't care about anyone except himself. He's vain and mean and – what should I do?"_

I think we all knew who it was really from, but Gwen answered it. "If there's anything I've learned from this, it's to be straight up." Basically, all the asker needed to talk to her boyfriend.

DJ agreed. "Honesty would've saved my butt, too. If you can't be honest, Bridgette-"

"No, no, that wasn't from me!" Bridgette said quickly. The anvil came loose, and DJ had to push Gwen out of the way. Geoff immediately made some joke about them being slightly closer than usual, but I refused to react to them. I focused completely on Geoff, folding my arms and glaring at him.

Needless to say, by the time the episode ended, things were pretty tense. Bridgette dragged Geoff off angrily, saying "We need to talk, Captain Hollywood, _now._"

Like I said, DJ did introduce me to his mom, but the show had been so stressful that I couldn't manage to be my usual self and was...dare I even say it...shy.

"Sorry." I apologized to DJ afterwards. "I was just so stressed that I was scared that if I started talking too much I'd say something stupid. And I really want her to like me."

"It's okay." DJ said. "She already knows what you're like from the show, and I think she understood why you were so quiet. I got the feeling that she actually really likes your attitude. She thinks I'm too soft on others. The way that you talk straight without unnecessary cruelty...I think you're approved." He smiled. "Trust me, I could tell if Momma disapproved of you, and she doesn't."

I tried to talk to Geoff a lot within the next few days, but he was always too busy and would say "Sorry, sis. We'll talk later, okay?" at best, and "Don't you have better things to do, Elle?" at worst. Bridgette was right – it wasn't just on the show where he'd changed – it was a personality switch, 24-7. Well, it hadn't started out that way. It had just been flashes of sadism that developed so slowly, it wasn't until the second Aftermath show when it was coming to a high.

Forget Total Drama Action. The real action was back at the studio!

**Any idea why I decided to kick Elle off early now? Of course, next season, she won't have Geoff to worry about, but only I know how long she'll have bigger problems. Please review!**


	28. Chapter 28: A Simple Little Shock

**Ah, another chapter, another show. Let's see what happens!**

Courtney won her case against the show and was allowed to go to the movie lot and compete again – and her lawyers got her advantages, too. I was glad to be rid of her for the moment, but at the same time, I hoped with all my heart that she wouldn't win.

Justin's manipulative side was failing badly. At the start of the show, Lindsay and Beth had been willing to do anything to please him, but now, they basically ignored him. The guy couldn't understand it.

Owen came to the studio after Courtney came back, voted off for viewing everyone as food. He was followed by Heather, and then Leshawna. Heather had actually been a lot better this season. Thing was, earlier on in the season, Leshawna had gotten a reward for winning the hospital movie challenge and she'd been able to hang out with her favourite cousin. Courtney had recorded all this stuff she'd said on her PDA about everyone. She'd been trash talking – yeah, the girl I considered one of my best friends had talked trash about everyone on the show. Yes, even me – something about me being nice mostly, but when I wasn't nice, worse than Heather. She even said stuff about Harold! But Heather had been the one to stand up for her and say that all she did was talk straight. "I do it all the time."

And despite everything Leshawna had said, she performed an awesome cheer to make it up to the people still in the game. At Heather's elimination, Leshawna said Heather could count her as a friend, even. Heather didn't seem to mind being left out of the game, this time at least. I still avoided her at the studio, but that was okay. She didn't have any interest in talking to me, anyway.

As for Leshawna, I did confront her about what she'd said about me, but she wholeheartedly apologized, and I admitted that maybe she was right.

I kind of enjoyed the next Aftermath show. Not at the beginning. Bridgette thought she had managed to get through to Geoff, and halfway through the intro, he whispered to her "So far, so good?"

"So far." she whispered back.

"Bridgette thinks we need to bring more insanity to the show." Geoff told the audience. Bridgette glared at him. "I mean profanity." This time, she punched him in the arm. "Okay, okay, more humanity. She thinks I've gone way too over the top. But then, so have our ratings!"

Bridgette pointed out that everyone on TDA were people too, had already gone through torture from Chris and lost out on the million. "They should be able to come here and feel safe to speak their minds."

"No one goes on a reality show to feel safe, Bridge!" Geoff protested. "This isn't some cushy talk show!"

It got worse. Bridgette was telling Geoff off about insensitivity, and he answered "Hey, I'm just doing what the producers tell me. Can I help it if I take my job seriously? Maybe you should try."

We all gasped at that. Bridgette took it seriously – she just still had feelings. Geoff actually enjoyed the slapstick.

"You've turned into a bully, you know that?" Bridgette snapped. "A total Chris clone."

Apparently, that meant to Geoff that the show was really awesome.

Owen was the first guest introduced, his arms full of food. "Hi, everyone!"

Izzy laughed and jumped forward, landing perfectly on Owen's shoulders (did I mention they'd kind of become a couple? Owen had had a crush on her since TDI). "Hi, Izzy." he greeted her. "Hi, Bridgette. Hi, Geoff."

But this time, instead of Truth or Hammer, or even Truth or Anvil, it was Truth or Electrocution.

No, seriously. The guests had to sit in a chair with a skullcap and get electrocuted if they lied.

"You have got to be kidding!" cried Bridgette. Geoff just insisted that it was low voltage.

"Just tell the truth and you'll be okay!" Trent called from the peanut gallery.

Owen insisted that he was cool with it, even when Bridgette told him that he didn't have to do it. Except that he freaked out and started confessing to everything bad he'd ever done when he was a kid.

Geoff burst out laughing. "I was going to ask questions about the show, but that was awesome!"

To be honest, that was awesome. I didn't fault anyone for enjoying that one.

But on the other hand, Geoff's questions didn't make for good truth. Owen wasn't mad at anyone for anything that had happened on the show, even when Chris kicked him off only because no one was supposed to vote for Courtney and everyone except Courtney herself did it anyway.

Bridgette glared at Geoff. "We talked about this. You said you were going to change, Captain Hollywood! The only thing that you changed today was your outfit, three times!"

"Just one more, Bridge." Geoff said. "One more question, and I'm done, I swear!"

But this question was awful. Through it, Owen discovered that because of the money he'd won in the first season, his mom had blown all this money. But Owen had, of course, given up the money for a chance at more money. Which none of us got.

But minutes later, that was when Bridgette had had enough. "Ugh, I don't even know who you are any more!" she said.

"I'm the hottest dude you've ever been with!" Geoff answered.

"Not any more. It's over." Yes, she's actually dumped him. On air. While there was an extra long segment of That's Gonna Leave A Mark, I mouthed at Bridgette "_Can we ask the producers if I can co-host with you instead?" _She'd actually nodded, but I knew she was still trying to comprehend what she'd just done, and wasn't really paying so much attention to me.

"Bridge, come on." Geoff tried to coax.

"Owen, would you please tell Geoff to stop talking to me?" Bridgette said.

"Geoff, Bridgette would like you to stop talking to her."

"I can hear her!" Geoff told him. "Bridge, let's talk about this."

But it was time to bring in the next guests – Leshawna and Heather. Heather had an afro wig.

"Great to see you, Leshawna." Bridgette smiled, greeting the other guest only with a curt "Heather. Nice wig."

It was Heather's turn to be electrocuted if she lied. "They can shock me all they want." she said coolly. "My parents tried electroshock therapy on me as a kid to try to make me a nicer person. Worked like a charm!"

I couldn't help giggling. "Glad I didn't meet her half a lifetime ago." I whispered to Ezekiel, who I was sitting next to. It was weird, the friendship I'd started to form with the homeschooled kid. I usually would've sat with DJ on the show, but I felt sorry for Zeke, so I'd sat next to him for this show.

Heather got shocked every time she spoke. Apparently, she _did _think Courtney was a worthy competitor, that she _didn't _believe Lindsay was as dumb as she looked, and that she _did _think Beth was a threat.

Leshawna took her turn, but she promised not to lie. She still believed that when Heather stood up for her on the show, she meant it all. She didn't blame anyone for being mad at her for all the trash-talking she did. And the last question was about Harold. "Harold and I are just friends." she told the webcam asker. "And that's all we'll ever be."

But there was some footage that we hadn't seen. We'd seen Harold doing yo-yo tricks already, and Heather trying to copy him and failing. Finally, we saw Leshawna watching Harold.

"I've seen that look before." Geoff told her. "It's the way Bridgette used to look at me." Bridgette punched him in the arm again, and I couldn't keep my mouth shut.

"Not the best analogy, idiot!" I yelled out. "If you keep this up, I'm disowning you."

Leshawna had to tell the truth. "All right, all right! Truth is I like Harold! A lot. Sure, there's a part of me that can't resist those little man biceps of his. Who could? But we're friends. Which is how we're gonna keep it."

Finally, Leshawna was free, and she asked what was Geoff's problem. We all agreed, he'd become mean. Heather even said she was proud of him for it.

"I'm just having some fun." he protested. That's when I got my idea. I looked at Bridgette, and then motioned to the skullcap and to Geoff. She nodded.

"You know what I think would be fun?" she said with a smirk. She whispered my idea to Heather and Leshawna.

"Since you're such a huge fan of Truth or Electrocution, we think you should take a turn!" Leshawna said.

"And it was my idea!" I called out.

They threw him into the chair and Bridgette was ready to ask the first question. "Geoff, is this really the new you? The manager, the bullying? Or is this just what you think people want from you?"

Geoff tried not to answer, but Bridgette insisted. Finally he said "This is all me, all the way." He got shocked.

Finally, Owen asked a great question. "How do you _really _feel about Bridgette?"

"Whatever." Geoff shrugged. "It's not like I need her." He got another shock, and that's when it happened. "Okay! I'm crazy about her. I'm crazy about you, Bridge. I'm sorry for the way I acted."

And it looked like there was some more hope left for us yet. Geoff and Bridgette even finished the show making out.

Geoff finally talked to me afterwards. "I was serious when I said I was going to disown you." I told him. "You're going to go back to being who you were before this show, right?"

Geoff smiled at me. "When I apologized on the show, I was completely honest, Elle. I didn't hate who I was then, but when I look back...everyone was right. It hit home when even Heather thought I was just as bad as her."

"So will you stop being bullying Captain Hollywood and be my brother again? Because I missed him."

"You got it, sis."

And it was true. For the rest of the show, Geoff was his old self again – the nice guy, the chillaxer. It also meant that he and Bridgette did a lot more making out, but that was a small price to pay.

I don't really want to go through everything that happened after the last Aftermath. Owen went back on the show for a while, but he was really only there to sabotage everyone else. Justin arrived in a body cast after Courtney pushed him off a building. Lindsay was surprisingly competent in the show, but accidentally got herself voted off. Harold arrived after that, followed by Courtney (the contestants were finally kicking her off for how awful she was becoming – much worse than last season, I mean, even Duncan voted her off after she gave him a 32-page contract of everything he had to change if they were going to be in a relationship), and Owen, who was fired from his job. He felt horrible doing it, anyway.

The only thing of worth was when Courtney had to sing a song about her "prince" during the fairytale movie challenge, and Harold bought a CD of it, saying "I'm gonna listen to this beautiful love song and think of Leshawna."

"No way is he thinking of me while listening to that!" Leshawna muttered.

We got to see Harold receiving her message in the confessional. He was singing the wrong words to the song "_My prince will buy me lots of hot dogs...my prince will love ponies too..." _Then he read out Leshawna's message. "_Yo Harold, if you play that skinny rich girl's song and think about me, I'll have to kill you."_

I giggled. "Well, that was straightforward." I grinned at my friend. "Sure you won't ask him out? I think he deserves a chance."

Leshawna frowned. "I know. Don't get me wrong, I like him a lot, but look at me. Look at him. Can you really see us being more than friends?"

She had a point, but I still felt sorry for Harold. It was nice that he'd accepted her friendship and nothing more, but continued to admire and worship her.

Then it got to the finale – Beth vs Duncan. Each of us ex-contestants got to ask them one question to decide who we wanted to win. I'd already decided, so I just asked them what their favourite challenge was and why. I don't even remember the answer. I think Duncan said something about not liking any of the challenges, and Beth said something about bonding with a raccoon in one episode and liking that they managed to become friends. That cemented who I was rooting for.

There was almost an equal amount of votes for both (and one for Izzy's imaginary friend Explosivo). There was just one vote to tie it up, and the winner was...

"Beth!"

I started cheering loudly, jumping up and down. Yep, I'd voted for Beth. She was a total sweetheart – who wouldn't vote for her? I never liked Duncan that much. Besides, he'd spent the whole season torturing Harold for rigging the votes last season to kick off Courtney. Dude paid the price in those pranks the others kept playing on him beforehand.

After that, Beth's (presumed mythical) boyfriend Brady made an appearance. She'd talked about him all season, but no one had believed her.  
"Not only is he real, he's really handsome!" hissed Heather.

Meanwhile, Duncan and Courtney walked off together. Courtney had said they were over when he voted her off, but it looked like they'd be back together within a few hours.

Farewell, Total Drama Action.

**The special next! Is anyone else hyped?**


	29. Chapter 29: Break In Seasons

**Yay, the special! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone and Ali6132 (I feel like Beth now, even though I graduated high school in 2012).**

Nearly a year had passed since the beginning of Total Drama. Although most of us weren't really famous any more, the press still followed us around. When Duncan and Courtney broke up over the summer, it was all over the news. "I have nothing to say about that guy," Courtney told the press, "Except that he's a complete thug! And I wish I'd never met him!"

"No comment." Duncan said.

"And he has the table manners of a chimp! And-"

"No comment!"

"And he always chews with his mouth open! And he's constantly interrupting me! And-"

"I _said, _no comment!"

Gwen had put up a blog when she got emails over if she liked Duncan or not. "Okay, I'm still getting a lot of emails about Duncan. _Do you like him? He's perfect for you! Courtney doesn't deserve him, you do! _Enough already. He has a girlfriend! Case closed."

But after the breakup, she put up another blog, saying "Courtney is totally nuts letting Duncan get away like that! He is the best thing that ever happened to her! I mean, look at the guy! He's hot! I mean...he's okay...for her." Maybe she did like him?

Geoff got quite a few stalkers, and Bridgette wasn't too pleased. That got press coverage too, but Geoff confirmed that he was one hundred percent loyal to his girlfriend. "I should never have let my eyes stray from my schmoopy-schmoo." Yeah...I know.

Bridgette's face had softened when he said that and she added "And I should always trust my cutie-patootie."

Their relationship was so sweet, it was sickening. I was glad DJ and I weren't like that. Speaking of DJ and I, there was press coverage on us, too. Thing was, remember how I said DJ loved his mom a lot? Well, he was getting like Principal Skinner with his mother. He almost lost his girlfriend because of his mother, too.

Thing was, DJ still hung out with me as much as he could, but we almost never went out on dates, and most of the time when we saw each other on evenings, it was me always coming over to his for dinner, and his mom was always there.

"I can't be in a relationship where I come second!" I told the press. "It's great that DJ is so close to his mom, but there is such a thing as dividing time."

"I love Momma a lot," DJ told the press, "And I don't wanna lose Elle because of her. I just don't know how to divide things."

I sighed. "DJ, simple. Pick out days where you have time for me, and days when you want to stay home. As long as I have two days of the week when you're free and we can be together alone, that's all I ask."

There were other things going on, like the Blog War between Heather and Gwen, Beth and Lindsay getting arrested when they visited France, and many other things. Cody, Harold, Justin and Trent formed a short-lived band called the Drama Brothers.

But then, just before my seventeenth birthday, everyone turned up for the Gemmie Awards (I came with DJ in his mom's bus). We'd been interviewed for Celebrity Manhunt by their hosts, Blaineley and Josh, and now they had a roving reporter – well, more like a fan upgraded to reporting – a tall purple-haired girl called Sierra. Later on, I found out that she'd been the one writing the fan sites, the Obsessed Uber-Fan, a name that really suited her. She was very, very annoying, with a voice like nails on a blackboard and an exuberance that got tiring very quickly.

"DJ! Elle!" cried Sierra as we arrived, asking questions. "Secretly, who can't you stand from Total Drama?"

I folded my arms. "I've made it clear. I don't talk bad about people when they're not watching."

DJ's mom didn't let him answer. "What's wrong with you, girl?" she snapped at Sierra. "You think I raised my son to talk smack behind people's backs?"

But when we tried to get into the Gemmie awards, we were stopped. Chris himself told us that we were now old news, while the cast of his new show, Total Drama Dirtbags, were the new thing.

"A bunch of jerks live in a huge mansion and get all bored and backstabby." explained Chris' assistant – Noah! He was fired two seconds later, but anyway...

"Excuse me." An extremely good-looking but arrogant-looking guy pushed through, knocking over Cody.

"Cody?" screeched Sierra like it was a tragedy.

As it turned out, this guy seemed to be Chris' peg to be the fan favourite on his new show. He was called Alejandro, and now I looked at him, yeah, he was either Spanish or Latin American.

So the 22 of us – plus Sierra – were locked out of the Gemmies. Okay, so Izzy tried to find a way in, but her plan didn't go exactly how it should've gone. The door closed on her.

"Izzy, can you do that again?" Sierra asked.

"Do what?"

Oh, and we also lost the win for Best Reality Show Cast, as we saw from the TV on the outside.

Courtney wrenched the TV from its place and kicked it down. "Who cares about that stupid award? I'm going to law school! I have a future."

"I miss that girl." Duncan remarked.

Chris was going to introduce his new cast on the Orphah show the next day. Yep, it was officially going to be the end of fame for us.

"Dudes, you heard the guy." sighed Geoff. "We're nobodies again."

"At least I'll be able to survive on the streets." Duncan said.

"Me too." added Ezekiel, just as a lowlife swiped his wallet. I grabbed it back just as quickly and slipped it back into Zeke's pocket.

"And I'll go back to being just another pretty face." sighed Justin.

"And pecs." Katie added.

"And abs." put in Sadie.

"And butt." finished Owen. Yeah, I'm sure the guy is bisexual.

"I can't go back to my old life!" cried Heather. "If I'm not famous, I'm not popular! So...cold..." Weird. She'd said she was popular the day we'd met. Oh yeah, BTW, Heather had managed to grow some of her hair back. Now it was in a short ponytail, about the same length mine was.

It was Sierra who gave us hope. "What's the matter with you?! No one deserves to be more famous than you guys! You can't just give up! Do you have any idea how many millions of fans of you are out there! I've been watching, blogging, PVRing you since the first episode! I – I mean, we – have fan sites about each and every one of you! We know everything about you, and we are rooting for you! We know your eating habits, your hopes, your fears, your DENTAL RECORDS!"

"Stalker." muttered Heather.

"You haven't seen her fan sites." I muttered back.

"You can't let us down now!" continued Sierra. She suggested that we try to beat the Total Drama Dirtbags cast to the Orphah studio in New York and get on TV.

Izzy had some weird idea on how to get there, but we just took DJ's bus. Courtney drove. "Doesn't this jalopy go any faster?" she whined.

"Maybe you should let Duncan drive." Gwen suggested.

"Not helping, Gwen."

"She's just sticking up for her boyfriend." Heather smirked. "Wait...oh!" She looked at Courtney. "Duncan's your boyfriend, my mistake!"

Beth had gone green, saying she thought she was going to be sick. DJ's mom warned her that she wasn't allowed to be sick on her bus.

We managed to slow down the Dirtbags' bus by throwing chocolate at their windscreen. Leshawna offered her bra as a catapult. No, seriously, she did. "What, you've never seen triple Ds before?"

Alejandro was driving the Dirtbags' bus, and he looked really pissed off when we splattered chocolate all over the windscreen. "You're gonna regret this!" we could faintly hear him yelling.

"You messed with the wrong reality show cast, mister!" Heather yelled back.

Would you believe it, Courtney nearly killed us with her driving. She and Duncan got into an argument while she was driving, because she wasn't going fast enough, and right in the middle of the argument, they just...started making out. The bus went off the road and we nearly died by falling into a canyon. We only survived because Leshawna's bra managed to hold the weight of the bus so we were low to the ground. Then we cut the bra and got out of the bus.

Finally, Geoff decided to organize a group. "I'm gonna get help. Then we're all gonna party!"

"I'll come with you, Geoff." offered Justin.

"Me too!" chorused Katie and Sadie.

Trent, Beth and Eva also decided to go.

"Anyone else?" Geoff asked. "Bridgette, babe?"

"I'm gonna catch some rays, 'kay, sweetie?" Bridgette answered.

"Who am I to come between a hottie and her rays?" Geoff asked. "Elle, you coming?"

I pretended to act offended. "Okay, I know you can't see me as a hottie since I'm your sister, but I've gotta catch some rays too, you know!" I teased. "See you when you get back."

It was a day later when we were found.

"It's Chris!" cried Sierra. So we were taken back to the movie lot and even got pancakes.

Chris finally explained what his plan really was. "We all know that no one does drama like you guys."

"Duh." Heather snapped. "But what happened to Total Drama Dirtbags?"

"It was a trick!" explained a very pissed-off looking Alejandro. "There never was any Total Drama Dirtbags!"

The whole thing was a trick to see if we still had it in us, because Chris wanted us to do another season – around the world in a jet, for another million.

"What about Alejandro?" Heather asked.

"A dupe, just like the rest of you. I needed someone on the inside. But to make it up, I told him he can join you guys next time!"

So the search party wouldn't be participating, but the rest of us would, including Sierra. I didn't know if that was good or bad.

I made one last confessional before going home to pack. "So I'm coming back for a season. I'm sorry you're not coming with me, Geoff! Text me! And text Bridge too, I know she'll miss you even more than me! Third time lucky – maybe this time I'll make it to the finals!"

**Elle doesn't know what she's in for. Please review!**


	30. Chapter 30: Let Us Fly

**FINALLY, I get to TDWT! Oh, and also, Duncan Campbell is a real person. I literally looked up singers called Duncan to write that joke! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 (Leshawna, Bridgette and DJ on the same team – you'd be right), Elizabeth Life Stone (Request granted) and the guest reviewer (she's gonna hate him by the end).**

When the group of us arrived on the runway for our plane, Alejandro actually showed a different side to him. As Chris introduced the newbies to the audience, Alejandro stepped out of the bus, where Tyler, Izzy, Bridgette and Ezekiel had fallen over. "Perhaps I can assist?" he offered charmingly, helping Bridgette and Izzy up.

"Wowie..." Izzy murmured, her eyes widening.

"I – I – I have a boyfriend!" Bridgette stammered.

Alejandro offered a hand to the two guys. "And amigos, please, allow me."

"Wow, eh?" began Ezekiel.

"I like girls!" Tyler said quickly.

I soon found out why Sierra's Cody page was more elaborate than anyone else's. I hadn't noticed any interaction with them at the Gemmies, but when she got off the bus, she squealed and rushed over to him. "Oh my gosh, Cody! I've dreamed of this moment, only you weren't wearing a shirt!"

Huh, could be worse. At least it wasn't DJ she was obsessed with.

On the other hand, the plane probably couldn't be worse. Izzy seemed to have gotten over her fear of flying, but Owen simply freaked out at the condition of it. "I can't ride in that! Call the United Nations! Call a cab! Call my mom! No, I'm not doing this! This is unethical-"

Chris knocked him out with a frying pan. "Anyone else got a problem with it?"

"No!" Cody said quickly.

"Love it!" Lindsay chirped.

"Dibs on the window seat!" added Bridgette.

I'd forgotten one last thing about this new season, Total Drama World Tour. Chris said that in every episode, we had to do a spontaneous musical number. Most of us were not looking forward to that.

"I don't have a problem with it." Courtney said brightly.

"Yeah, cause you like singing." Leshawna pointed out.

"Well, I don't!" Duncan said firmly. "Girls sing, little birdies sing, Duncans do not sing."

"Oh yeah?" I challenged with a sweet smile. "What about Duncan Campbell? Plenty of people with your name sing."

Chris showed us around the plane. After each challenge, the losers would sit in Economy Class as we traveled to the next destination. It was worse than any of the former living conditions we'd had – no beds, just wooden benches and safety harnesses.

We also had the common area, where everyone would meet, and have Chef's in-flight meals. Wow, I'd even take one of Canadian Airlines' crappy meals over Chef's food. Then there was the elimination room, where the losing team would go each time we had an elimination challenge. And finally, confessionals would be in the airline bathroom.

The winning team after each challenge got to travel in First Class, which looked amazing. I sincerely hoped I would be able to win a challenge this time before getting kicked off.

"Now this is the kind of accommodation ladies deserve." Alejandro remarked, although he was watching Lindsay as he said it.

"They have ladies in First Class too?" the girl said, then she got it. "Oh, me! You meant me!"

"That guy is as smooth as Momma's gravy." DJ said.

"Lindsay's supposed to like me." Tyler said miserably.

"Nobody can compete with gravy."

"Except you." I murmured, stretching up to kiss DJ on the cheek. He smiled at me. I wasn't attracted to Alejandro at all. Sure, he was, to be cliched, drop-dead gorgeous, but I don't know...I liked sweet guys. He looked like the kind of guy that didn't really do "sweet'. It didn't mean he wasn't easy on the eyes.

"Lindsay, I can do a handspring!" Tyler called, trying and epically failing.

Lindsay looked concerned about him, but didn't seem to remember him at all. I swear, her memory was getting worse. "Oh my gosh, poor...I'm blanking on his name. Ooh, ooh, I know! Alejandro!"

"That's _my _name." Alejandro corrected her.

"And what a nice name." Lindsay gushed dreamily. "Alejandro...I could say it all day."

"Please do."

Lindsay giggled, and I frowned. Was everyone really that shallow? Okay, Lindsay I understood. But Izzy had Owen and she was obviously drawn in by Alejandro. And Bridgette was more sensible and she'd stared too.

Whatever. Alejandro was flirtatious, but he seemed nice enough. Maybe he was just acting arrogant at the Gemmie Awards because Chris told him to act that way to fit in with his fake show's contestant image. Who knew?

Finally, we were all sitting in the common area, and Chef was starting up the engine. The plane juddered, and Bridgette, who I was sitting next to, almost fell out of her seat.

Alejandro caught her. "Senorita, are you okay?"

"Is the Earth moving?" Bridgette murmured.

"Nope, we are!" Izzy grinned.

One last thing. Chris kicked Ezekiel out of the plane, and then tried to ditch him.

I frowned at Chris. "Why did you do that?" I snapped. "All he wanted was another chance at the million! Zeke's a person, just like you!"

"Except less famous and amazing." Chris said arrogantly. "Why? You wanna take an early Drop of Shame too?"

I backed away. "No, it's cool." But I counted Ezekiel as a sort-of friend. He'd just been kicked off unfairly.

I talked to Bridgette for most of the flight. She was already missing Geoff a lot.

"I miss him too," I said, "But I know he'll text you all the time – I made him promise he'd text both of us. Don't forget, you're here to win. Don't even look at any other guys."

Bridgette frowned. "I am here to win! And what do you mean, other guys? I'm loyal to Geoff!"

I sighed. "So what was with that 'is the Earth moving' when you fell and Alejandro caught you?"

"I was caught off-guard." Bridgette defended. "Besides, it's not like he was making a move on me or anything."

Sierra was still stuck on Cody. "Cody Emmett Jameson Anderson. I also happen to know that your birthday is April first. You're my very own April Fool."

_Ding-ding! _A bell suddenly rang.

"Whenever you hear that friendly little bell, it's musical number time!" Chris announced. "So let's hear it!"

"But what are we supposed to sing?" Courtney asked.

"You have to make it up as you go." Chris answered. "Wouldn't be challenging otherwise, now would it?"

And we all sang. "_Up..." _Courtney began.

"_Up..." _Izzy joined in.

"_Up..." _and Sierra.

"_Up!" _and Lindsay.

"_Sing..." _now it was Harold, the nerd, singing.

"_Sing..." _Cody joined in.

"_Sing..." _and DJ.

"_Sing!" _and finally Tyler.

"_We're flying!" _all of us girls sang.

"_We're singing!" _the boys added.

"_We're flying and we're singing!" _all of us sang.

"_Come fly with us!" _sang Sierra on her own.  
"_Come fly with us." _Cody harmonized the next one with her.

"_Gotta lotta crazy tunes to bust, haha!" _Izzy cackled.

"_Come fly with us, come fly with us!" _Bridgette sang, with Lindsay giving her the harmony.

"_It's a pleasure and an honour and a must." _Alejandro answered, taking one hand of both girls. Both of them blushed and giggled silently. Flirting again?

"Dudes, this is messed." Duncan said in a bored tone. "You're singing in a plane."

"_What did you expect, Chris is freaking insane!" _was Harold's reply before he hit himself in the head with his numchucks.

"Yeah, but guys, you're singing on TV!" Gwen protested.

"_Haven't you always wanted to, it just can't be meeeeee..." _Courtney sang. She actually did have a really good singing voice.

"_Come fly with us, come fly with us!" _DJ and Leshawna sang.

"Do you know how to steer this thing?" I heard Heather yelling at Chef.

"_Come fly with us!" _sang Noah, and I harmonized with him in the next line. "_Come die with us!" _

Owen started screaming again about how much he hated flying, but there were still two people who hadn't sang. When we tried to ask Duncan and Gwen to sing too, they both said no.

That was until Chris pulled out a copy of the rules for Season Three. Bridgette read out the rule in song. "_All contestants must sing in each show!"_

"_Duncan, do it, let's go!" _Courtney ordered in song, giving him her trademark disapproving look.

"_Gwen, sing it, don't go!" _Cody pleaded.

"I don't want to go home..." Gwen admitted. She stood up and sang "_Come fly with us, come fly with us!_

_Come and fly with us!"_

"Duncan, come on! Please?" Courtney begged.

"_This sucks!" _Duncan sang.

"Yeah!" all of us chorused.

Chef's voice came over the intercom. "Enough singing, fruitcakes! Strap yourselves in. We are now beginning our descent into Egypt." We could hear him muttering to himself. "Musical numbers, the worst idea. Chris is such an id – hey, why's the light still on? Oh, sh-" Yeah, he'd nearly called Chris an idiot over the intercom.

This was, so far, shaping up to be the craziest season yet. Musical numbers, new contestants, and a free trip around the world!

**We'll pick up again in Egypt. Please review! BTW, Elle is the first OC that I haven't planned to have major interactions with the new contestants. That may change, though. After all, an earlier fanfic was devoted to my OC's interactions with them.**


	31. Chapter 31: Team No-Victory-Yet

**In Egypt! Thanks to Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132 and the guest reviewer!**

We had a challenge right from the beginning. Basically, Chris called it Pyramid Under-Over. "It means you'll choose how you'll get to the finish line. Either over or under the pyramid!"

At that moment, Ezekiel came running up. He'd been hiding in the cargo hold, managing to get back on the plane.

"Impressive." remarked Chris. "But...you're still out."

"No way! I'm in it to win it! Word!"

But I couldn't spend any time talking to Zeke. I ran under the pyramid with most of the others.

We came to three doorways. "Oh, great." Noah remarked. "Our friendly neighbourhood host dude failed to mention there were different paths."

"Hey, Sierra, which way do you think we should go?" Heather asked in her nice-girl voice. I supposed she figured that she needed an ally and thought Sierra, being the new girl, wouldn't know what she was like. It seemed to be working, too, but I didn't understand. Sierra said she was a fangirl, and I'd read all the mean but truthful stuff she'd written on her Heather blog.

"I know!" cried Izzy. "Okay, I saw this in a spy movie once. You lick your finger and hold it up to find the air flow!" She did so. "Okay, DJ, give me your hand."

"Don't do it, DJ!" called out Leshawna. "You might catch a case of crazy. Come on, Harold." DJ and I followed her and Harold under the middle door.

We passed a bunch of mummified animals. "That's a real dog!" cried DJ. "Poor little guy."

I smiled sympathetically. "True."

"DJ, we do not have time to cry over a stuffed dog!" cried Leshawna.

DJ didn't answer, petting the mummified dog. "Hey there, little buddy. Wish I had a biscuit to give you..." The dog collapsed into dust.

At that moment, the pyramid started shaking, and scarabs rained down. All of us had to run like crazy. But hey, we WERE first out of the pyramid.

"Good work, guys!" Chris congratulated us. "Go stand behind the number one."

Harold told us what 'one' was in Egyptian, as we stood there. I was pleased to have DJ and Leshawna on my team again. And although I didn't know Harold too well, he was okay. Besides, he'd be happy with Leshawna being on the same team as him.

At that moment, three more people slid down the pyramid on what appeared to be a street sign. Bridgette and Lindsay were cheering as they almost surfed down (so Bridgette can surf pyramids as well as waves...). Alejandro was also with them. "Ladies, after you." he said as they joined us. Well, Bridgette and Lindsay joined our team first. I high-fived Bridgette, but looked warily at Alejandro as he started forward. I didn't know if I wanted him on our team – he'd flirted with Bridgette and Lindsay so far, and I didn't want him to start on me.

But Chris stopped Alejandro. "Not so fast. This season, three teams! Bridgette and Lindsay round out Team One. Alejandro, you're the first member of Team Two."

Harold again provided Egyptian translation, and Chris continued to Alejandro "But if it's any consolation, you do get..."

Tyler tumbled down the pyramid, yelling out in pain.

"Uh..Tyler, is it?" Alejandro said.

At that moment, the next two members of his team came running out of the pyramid – Owen and Noah.

"Congratulations." Chris said brightly.

"That's...wonderful!" Alejandro said. I raised an eyebrow. Everyone knew he was just trying to be optimistic. He caught my eye at that moment and I mouthed "_Owen did win a season, so don't give up hope." _He gave a tiny nod, so no one else would have noticed.

Sierra came running out of the pyramid next, carrying Cody, with Heather not far behind. "Oh, I'm so happy we found you!" she gushed to Cody. "Heather, aren't you so happy?"

"I'm so happy I could scream." Heather said through gritted teeth.

"We made it!" cried Sierra. "Group hug!" She threw her arms around Cody. "Come on, Heather, you too!"

Sierra was on Team Two, while Cody and Heather were on Team Three.

"In Egyptian-"

"No one cares, Harold." Chris told him.

There were a few more people to come. Chris tried to get Courtney, Duncan and Gwen to sing a reprise, but that was when we had our first elimination. Duncan refused to sing again in the same episode. "If you need me, I'll be in the plane waiting for a ride home, cause I'm out! Done! I quit!"

Meanwhile, Courtney and Gwen joined the last team, along with Izzy.

Izzy was holding someone mummified – but it turned out to just be Ezekiel. "Come on, guy!" he begged Chris. "After all this, you gotta let me back in the game!"

"Fine," Chris sighed, "Only cause we're down a man thanks to Duncan McQuittypants. Go ahead and join Team One."

Then we got to choose a team name. Ours was pretty easy. "Team Victory!" we all called out.

"Team Amazon!" yelled Heather's team.

The last team argued a bit, but then Sierra spoke up. "Got it! Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Hot!"

"What?" the rest of her team said, but Chris had already made it the name.

"Best team name ever!" called out Chris. "Anyway, here are your rewards." For completing the challenge. "Team Amazon, you get a camel. Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Really Hot-"

"I think there were only four 'really's." Alejandro corrected.

"You get a goat." Chris continued. "And Team Victory, here you go." He gave us a...stick? But Chris didn't explain, because it was time for him to finish off the episode...and then immediately start filming the next one.

We were all given mats to stand on with our team colours. Ours was gold, I guess for the colour of victory. Team Amazon had pink, and Team CIRRRRH had blue.

Chris told us our next challenge was a camel race to the Nile...even though only Team Amazon had a camel. While Heather bossed her team around and Alejandro more politely got his team balanced onto their goat.

Harold took the stick. "I can use this to defend us from deadly sand snakes. They could be anywhere."

I looked at the ground warily. Lindsay gave a little scream and Leshawna jumped into Harold's arms. He struggled to hold her up. "Fear not...I will protect you..." He waved the stick around, nearly taking Zeke's eye out.

"Cool it before you really hurt somebody!" DJ said, taking it and throwing it away, but as he did, a seagull fell down. He'd hit the tiny little thing.

But Chris had one more thing to tell us – to watch out for the scarabs. "It's mating season and they get all...killy when they're in heat."

"I am glad there aren't any out here!" Leshawna remarked. "Those things are nasty!"

"I'll tell 'em you said so!" Yeah, he overturned an urn full of them. I immediately jumped on DJ's back in fear.

"The stick will save us!" cried Lindsay, seeing no other option. "Hop on, guys! Go, stick!"

_Ding-ding!_ The scarabs might leave us alone if we sang them a good song.

It was a very simple song. "_No need to get crazy," _Alejandro began, "_It's lovin' time at last!"_

"_You don't wanna eat us up..." _sang most of the other guys.

"_We're mostly full of gas." _Owen added.

"_It's mating time for scarabs..." _Courtney, Gwen and Heather sang together.

"_So what you waiting on?" _Leshawna and I chorused.

"_Just ignore us humans..." _added Izzy.

"_And make out til' the break of dawn!" _we all sang.

By this time, the scarabs were starting to stop, and we continued singing it. It was Zeke who ruined everything. We were a few more lines in when he suddenly said "Seasonal, eh? Oh no, wait!" The scarabs immediately started chasing us.

Our team ran, screaming, with Lindsay holding the stick. Boy, did I wish we had the camel. I think we just went in circles for a while.

The seven of us ended up sitting on a sand dune. "Lost in Egypt!" sighed Leshawna. "Ain't that a kick in the pants!"

"From first place to last." Harold broke the stick in half and threw it down. "GOSH!"

The stick began to tremble, and I gasped.

"It's a divining rod!" Harold exclaimed.

"That's awesome!" I cried. "Let's go!"

"I don't wanna be struck by lightning!" Lindsay protested.

"Lindsay, we mean that it helps find water." I explained to her quickly. "Come on, we better go!"

It was true. We got to the Nile last out of the teams, but we had to basket weave a boat across to the Nile. Team Amazon and Team CIRRRRH had swapped team members. Apparently Sierra wanted to be on Cody's team, so she swapped with Izzy. They'd both almost finished their boats. Team Amazon, in fact, only had to get their camel on their boat.

We got our boat weaved pretty easily. Leshawna and DJ were both pretty good at it.

Harold was the last to get into our boat, accidentally creating some holes that his legs went through, but it didn't sink. At least, not yet.

_Ding-ding! _We had a reprise to perform, this time to the crocodiles in the Nile. This went about as well as the last one did, as we paddled, except that the crocodiles bit off part off our boat. Just as we got to shore, Sierra was already off her boat, singing "_Till the Amazons..."_

"_Win!" _finished her team, having won the challenge and gotten to shore first.

"Congrats!" Chris said. "You're alive. And as long as you all got your rewards past the finish line, there will be no elimination!"

We all cheered, except for Zeke who told us "I lost the stick."

There was no doubt who to vote off that night. Chris told us that we'd go up to the bathroom, where our passports were. We would stamp the passport of the person we wanted to send home. "Got it, _Lindsay_?"

"Of course!" Lindsay said. "I so get it!"

I gave Ezekiel a sympathetic smile before I went in. Yes, I voted for him. We all did. He'd caused nothing but loss for our team so far.

So, now it was just sixteen of us left. But I was determined that by the end of the show, Team Victory would live up to its name!

**Yes, I put Elle on Team Victory, just as requested. I've already written stories about a girl on Team Amazon, and one on Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot. We all know why that's not good for her, but hey, her closest friends AND her boyfriend are on that team. Of course she wanted to be with them. Please review!**

**Please read my "Simpsons" story "The Hick Heartbreakers". PLEASE!**


	32. Chapter 32: Sensei Honour Doris McGrady

**Let's continue. Thank you for reviewing, Ali6132 and Elizabeth Life Stone.**

It was nice to have Courtney and Heather in a different compartment from the rest of us, but I wished so much that we were the ones in First Class, not them. Our team sat on one side of Economy class, with Team CIRRRRH on the other.

Geoff did text me after the Egypt show aired: _Tough luck, sis. Good luck later on. And by the way – keep an eye on Alejandro – he's getting way too close to Bridgette._

I didn't tell my friend that, partly because I didn't see it. Alejandro wasn't particularly flirting with Bridgette. Every five seconds, he was charming any one of us. He rescued Leshawna from getting sucked out of the plane while mentioning her beauty, and at one point he even complimented me. Leshawna, Lindsay and Bridgette were all smitten. Me? I tried to avoid him and stuck as close as I could to DJ, trying to keep him out. There was something really weird about the fact that he flirted with everyone. Was he just trying to be friendly and it came off as flirtatious? Or was there another reason?

Finally, we were called to the common area, ready for our next destination.

"Is today a reward challenge or an elimination challenge?" Harold wanted to know.

"Good question, Harold," Chris said, "And...like I'm gonna tell you!"

We thought it probably was a reward, since Duncan and Ezekiel were already gone.

"I could use a reward. I hope it's candy!" Lindsay squealed. "Or a whole bunch of shoes! Or shoes made of candy."

According to Chris, we were going to...Japan! Chef burst out with a katana, dressed up.

"Gosh, you guys, that's totally a Chinese outfit." Harold pointed out. He kept interrupting Chris as he spoke, saying things like "You think you'd work harder to get it right" and "Your cultural insensitivity is just, gosh!" Which might be why Chef just cut the plane door open and sent all of us freefalling towards the ground.

And that was when we had to sing.

"_We're singing as we're falling!" _sang Courtney.

"_While some are cannonballing!" _continued Heather as Izzy did just that.

"_Our lives begin to flash before our eyes!" _Alejandro sang.

"_We might just go ka-blooey!" _sang Noah and Owen.

"_Get smushed and become chewy!" _sang Harold and Tyler.

"_'Cept there's tons we wanna do before we die!" _all of us chorused. Most of us sang out something, but I didn't catch most of it. In fact, the only one I caught was the one before mine, which was Sierra's. Her one was, predictably, "_Marry Cody"._

When it got to me, I called out "_Start a prank war!" _Yeah, I'd read about them, and it was something I wanted to do. I just couldn't find anyone who'd fight me with it. Geoff was usually the one who did the deed but didn't have the ideas, and most of my friends only teased me when I mentioned it, which is why I usually kept to pulling stuff on my enemies. But I really did want to have a prank war one day.

After thirteen of us recording what we wanted to do, Noah continued "_But first we must cease dropping,"_

"_Our goal here would be stopping," _I sang before he could continue.

"_Before we smash into the ground from the sky-y!" _sang Izzy.

"_Flat into little pieces!" _sang DJ.

"_Heads merged with our feetses!" _Harold added.

"_That would really suck and here's why!" _Leshawna continued.

"_We'd like to keep on living!" _Bridgette sang, her ponytail blowing upwards.

"_So Chris," _sang Alejandro, "_We hope you're giving-"_

We all called out something, holding hands in a circle with Owen in the middle. I was holding hands with Lindsay on one side of me and Leshawna on the other.

So before I spoke, I could only properly hear Lindsay's cry of "Flying squirrel!" I caught most of it after that.

"Gymnastics mat!" I called out. Hey, I was under pressure! I'm sorry I couldn't be more creative.

"Bubble bath!" called Leshawna.

"I change to bubbles too!" Lindsay said quickly.

"Momma!" cried DJ.

"Pizza, - no!" Owen began to sing the next bit. "_Chips and some dip will do..."_

"_Cause there's still so much to do before we die, yeah, we shout it!" _we chorused.

"_There's still so much to do, there's still so much to do, there's still do much to do before we die!"_

We landed in a bowlful of rice...okaaaayyyy.

"Japan!" Harold cheered. "Yes! I know everything about this place!"

"What you know just sent us freefalling out of a plane!" Leshawna scolded.

"But I went to Sensei Steve's Feudal Japanese Summer Camp!" Harold protested.

"Oh yeah? I speak Japanese too." Alejandro said. "Leshawna," he said something in Japanese. "I said," he translated, "You are as beautiful as a flower." Leshawna smiled and giggled. I'd never seen her act so...girly, in all the time I'd known her.

I folded my arms. "Um, not that this isn't adorable, but Alejandro, this is really starting to get distracting. I get that you want to fit in with the cast, but that kind of flattery is just making you come off as trying way too hard." Well, that was the only reason I could think of for why he'd been so flirtatious.

Alejandro turned to me and said charmingly "To be honest, Elle, this is how I am all the time. I'm sorry if it's getting distracting to you."

I couldn't believe how well he'd taken my comment. It wasn't exactly a nice thing that I'd said, yet he'd been the one who apologized to me. All I could say was "Oh...it's okay. It's just that I don't want you to have to feel like you have to impress everyone just because you're new to the game."

Our first challenge was in a Japanese game show studio. It was basically human pinball – one person from each team would run inside a hamster ball and try to score as many points as possible. And Chris said he was going to give them something "local" to share the space with.

"We choose DJ!" called out Leshawna.

Chris held out the "surprise".

"A panda?" cried DJ. "No! Remember when I crumpled that mummy puppy in Egypt?" He started recounting something about exploding mummies until Leshawna interrupted.

"That so totally did not happen! The mummy dog didn't explode, it just disintegrated, remember?"

"I remember when you knocked a poor little birdie out of the sky." Lindsay interjected.

"Exactly!" cried DJ. "I think that dog thing might have cursed me."

I patted DJ's shoulder, having to reach a little bit, and said "It's OK. Look, you're not cursed, but if you want, I'll do it." I smiled at Chris as charmingly as I could. "Chris, I'm the pinball person for Team Victory. Do you guys agree?" I asked my team, giving them pleading looks. I wasn't sure about doing this at all, but of all people, I knew that DJ didn't have much luck with animals, even though he loved them, so there was every chance the panda would get hurt, especially if he thought the mummy dog had cursed him. If the panda didn't get hurt, he would probably get over it.

My team nodded agreeably, and Chris tossed me the panda. I smiled at it. "Um...hi. So looks like we're buds."

The panda reached up and tried to claw me, so I held it at arm's length. "Hey, you and I need to get along, OK? So no scratching." The panda looked ashamed, but then it saw DJ, and it honestly seemed to hate him, struggling to get away from me to attack. When I held it tight, it started on me.

Team CIRRRRH had better luck. Alejandro volunteered. His panda seemed more vicious than even ours, but then he just charmed it easily. "Why, hello, handsome creature. May I scratch your ears or get you a tasty cookie?"

Most of us girls "awed' at that display.

Finally, it was Team Amazon's turn.

"Gwen's face could use some remodeling." Heather said spitefully.

"Nice." Gwen deadpanned. "I hate to tell you, but we're on the same team, so you might wanna flip the witch switch back to off."

"Would you girls like some leadership?" Courtney asked venomously. "I'd be glad to choose."

"Stop bickering!" called out Cody. "I'll do it!"

And Cody had to share his space with...not a panda, but, instead, Sierra.

As a matter of fact, our team didn't win, but we didn't lose, either. Alejandro and his panda were unbeatable. But I think Sierra was more focused on forcing herself on Cody than on the challenge. My panda refused to cooperate with me, making it harder to focus, so we came second. The panda still tried to attack me when I came out, and I threw her at Chris. "Here, take her! She hates me."

After that, Chris showed us a Japanese promo for Total Drama Action. I even caught a glimpse of myself in there, with Heather roughly curling my hair for my terrible Izzy impression.

Our challenge was to make a Japanese commercial for Chef's new candy – Total Drama Yum-Yum Happy Go Time Candy Fishtails. We could use anything we found in the cargo hold for it. We got to choose second, due to the last challenge.

We went to the cargo hold, just as Team CIRRRRH left. "Good luck, honourable opponents." Alejandro said, bowing in the traditional Japanese way. Despite the way he'd flirted with half our team getting distracting, I actually was starting to like him by this time, although the fact that he managed to charm his panda and I didn't irritated me.

"I don't need your luck!" Harold said fiercely.

"Of course you don't." Alejandro said smoothly. "You have superior leadership skills and vision. Your team is lucky to have you."

"I know, right?" Harold grinned. "They are."

I punched him lightly in the arm. "Don't get too cocky, Sensei Harold. We still have to win this thing."

Honestly, trusting Harold with the commercial idea was something I shouldn't have done. He said he had a good idea. He played a samurai, while we were all ancient Japanese peasants.

"Great samurai!" cried Lindsay.  
"Please, do you have food?" called out Leshawna.

DJ completely forgot his line, and Bridgette had to take the line herself. "The hunger! The hunger! The hunger!"

You'd think Harold would give us the candy, but no, something happened that didn't make sense. I felt awful watching it after seeing Team CIRRRRH's pretty good commercial, with Owen as the monster destroying the town, and only being stopped after he got the candy.

Sierra and Cody did Team Amazon's commercial by themselves, and it was just...really weird.

Chef judged the commercials, since it was his candy. "Chris, I think I gotta go with Team Amazon." Apparently he liked the exploding doughnut in it.

"Cody, that was amazing!" Gwen complimented her teammate.

"Totally amazing!" Courtney agreed.

"Oh, isn't he?" Sierra gushed. "Group hug!" She threw her arms around Cody, but as her teammates approached, she glared at them. "Back off!"

Then Chef told us we were the worst. "You lose! You're sending someone home!"

I voted for Harold, but I knew for a fact that my inability to control the panda made me the only other target.

I spent the rest of the time before elimination with DJ. Although we'd been dating for nearly a year, we'd never really gone past making out, and we knew we were on camera, so we did little more than cuddle and kiss occasionally. But it was just nice to spend time with him.

Harold wasn't necessarily voted off or anything. Everyone except him and I had gotten the bags of peanuts we got at elimination. But before Chris could announce the last person to stay, Harold stood up. "Wait! It was I who brought dishonour to our team! Only one thing can restore the balance!" He held up a toy lightsaber, and stabbed himself with it, acting as if he really was killing himself. "Leshawna...I think...I will miss you...most of all..."

"Harold, that's a toy lightsaber." she pointed out. Harold answered by falling out of the plane, taking the Drop of Shame by choice.

Chris threw a parachute out after him. "You might need this! Good luck! He's yelling something back at me, oh, no, he's just screaming for his life!"

I sighed. "Never thought I'd know Harold well enough to miss him." I nudged Leshawna. "I'm telling you, give the guy a chance."

"Drop it, Elle." she said warningly.

I shrugged. "Sorry. Just saying."

**By the time of the next elimination, Elle is not going to be happy. Not that she'll necessarily know what happened or anything, but still...**


	33. Chapter 33: Love Cheater, Game Cheater

**Right! The Yukon! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone (the panda voted for her, because she wouldn't let it attack DJ...check the episode, the panda does vote), Ali6132, and the guest reviewer.**

As usual, Economy Class sucked. We missed Harold a bit, and I really didn't like the fact that we were the only ones who'd lost team members.

"And how is everyone back here?" Chris stepped in. "That is what I'd ask if I cared. Coming through, make way."

"Where are you taking us next?" Leshawna demanded. "Can it please be somewhere with no pinball of any kind?"  
"Or pandas?" DJ said.

"Or candied fishtails." Noah added.

"Fishtails? Where?" Owen asked. He'd been asleep for most of the flight, but it was better than having him wailing about how he was going to die because of his fear of flying.

Chris took us to the Yukon. Yeah, we nearly froze. Chris got a jacket (and hot chocolate), but not us. He said he'd ordered coats, but they wouldn't be ready for weeks. Seriously! I was wearing my usual blue halter top and green miniskirt and it had to be illegal to let us get frostbite, even on this show.

"Maybe we should huddle for warmth?" suggested Courtney. I immediately wrapped my arms around DJ and felt him doing the same, while Cody went for Gwen and got Sierra. Izzy, Leshawna and Lindsay all went to Alejandro, while Noah tried to hug Bridgette.

She pushed him away. "I have a boyfriend!" she reminded him.

"You can cuddle me, buddy." Owen said, almost crushing Noah.

The challenge was a race across the river full of icebergs. Then the first member of the team across would strap themselves into a harness on a dogsled and take a path marked by flags, picking up the rest of the teammates across the way. The first team to get across with everyone won.

I considered myself moderately athletic, but I still wasn't too good at iceberg jumping. I didn't fall in, but DJ had already gone with the dogsled and Leshawna by the time I got across. Bridgette was already at a meeting point, probably. I'd seen Alejandro helping her across, but don't ask me why he was doing that. Maybe Geoff was right and he was trying to make some moves on Bridgette. I would have to keep an eye on those moves he'd been making on pretty much every girl on our team. Even me! He'd caught my eye a couple of times on the flight and smiled at me. Every time, I found myself feeling a bit attracted to him, and so I'd just return the smile and then look away.

Lindsay and I started heading for the finish line together, but the sled pulled up at the first meeting point just as we got there, and we both hopped on.

"Now we just need to pick up Bridgette, and get to the finish line!" Leshawna grinned. "We're finally gonna win one!"

"All right, home free!" cheered Lindsay. DJ started sobbing about something.

"Would you forget your mama's freezer?" snapped Leshawna.

"I did...until she said home!"

"Don't cry, DJ!" I called. "Your mom wants you to get through this competition so when you get home, you guys can go back to Jamaica like you planned! Think about it!" Although, now I thought about it, I'd miss DJ if he moved to Jamaica. But still, it was the only motivation I could think of.

Leshawna was in the middle of telling us some story when our team's big problem came up. "So Harold's all 'you're a goddess' and I'm all 'yeah, I know'..."

It was Lindsay who noticed what had happened first. "I don't see any signposts, do you?"

"That's weird." Leshawna said. "Where's the path to the finish line, DJ?"

"I have no idea! My tears froze my eyes shut about ten minutes ago!"

"Why didn't you say that?" I called. "Stop, let me take over!"

Leshawna frowned. "DJ, keep running, we'll direct you. Elle," she lowered her voice, "We both know that DJ's the only one strong enough to pull all three of us, especially if we manage to get back on track and pick up Bridgette before getting to the finish line. You can't take on DJ's challenges every time he's...well, challenged."

Leshawna was right, that I wasn't strong enough. But with a temporarily blind runner, things could only get worse, and they did. While crossing the ice, DJ accidentally kicked a baby seal off a ridge.

"He fell down a crack of ice!" Lindsay cried.

DJ was about to start crying again, but Leshawna said quickly "Oh, look! He's climbing back up!"

"I can't hear him!" DJ said anxiously. Lindsay and I started making seal noises, and DJ finally moved on.

As it happened, we never did find Bridgette. We were first past the finish line, just ahead of the other teams, but Bridgette wasn't with us, so we were facing elimination, yet again. Team CIRRRRH won.

Bridgette was found at a meeting point, but she hadn't run to the finish line for a simple reason: Somehow her tongue had gotten stuck to the flagpole.

I asked her about it before eliminations. "Bridge, what happened? I don't get it!"

Bridgette's voice was muffled by the pole since Chris wouldn't give her any water to free her tongue. But the longer I listened to her, the easier it was to understand her. "I was going to kiss A-"

"Stop!" I cried. I spoke softly, but dangerously. "Bridgette, are you telling me that you were about to kiss someone?"

Bridgette directed her green eyes to the floor, but she nodded.

"And was that person Alejandro?" I asked. She nodded again. "And you are perfectly aware that you are still Geoff's girlfriend and he is probably watching this right now?" She gave one more nod.

I sighed and said quietly "I'm not going to kill you, but only because you've suffered enough, and I don't even want to think of what Geoff will say when he next sees you. But-"

"Elle, please, let me explain!" begged Bridgette.

"You already told me enough." I snapped. "You told me you were about this close from kissing Alejandro. That's unforgivable."

"No, Elle, please!" Bridgette pleaded. "It's not like you think! He was making all the moves on me, I told him I had a boyfriend, but he just kept saying things and he got into my head, so when he went to kiss me, I didn't think, I just let him, and then when I closed my eyes he just jumped on his sled, I didn't see it and the pole got in the way and...well, you know the rest."

I folded my arms, but I was ready to listen. "Look, Bridgette, if you can talk yourself out of this one, try. But there's no guarantee I'm forgiving you."

Bridgette told me that Alejandro had helped her across the ice, and that they'd already kissed on the ice – albeit completely accidentally. He was helping her, and when she jumped and he caught her, she fell and their lips connected. She had asked him if he was trying to make a secret alliance with her, but he said something about it being bigger than a game. And she had told him she had a boyfriend, but he just wouldn't listen to her. It was all about mind games. To be honest, it sounded like he'd been interested in her, but as Bridgette and I both knew now, Alejandro was a conniving, ruthless manipulator. Kind of like Heather, actually.

"So that's why he's been flirting?" I said. "So he can draw people in and then get them eliminated?"

"I think so." Bridgette said. "But Elle, you can't say a word to him. If he knows you're onto him, he'll make sure you're gone next, whether his tactics work on you or not. I mean, it might not work, but don't underestimate him. He's smart."

I sighed. "Fine."

"Um," Bridgette began. "One more thing. Elle, are you still fri-"

"Yes." I said. "Because I know you're sorry for what you did and I also can see why you might've lost it enough to do it. But if you ever cheat on Geoff again, if he even gives you another chance, I'm not going to listen to explanations.. If you're eliminated, I'll call you regularly, so be sure to let me know how everyone else is. I _am_ going to vote for you today."

"I know." Bridgette mumbled. "I knew you guys would vote me off."

We did. Chris smirked as he gave Bridgette the parachute. "Bridgette, any final words before taking the Drop of Shame?"

Bridgette's words were still muffled, but I was getting accustomed to it. The rest of the team just looked confused, but I understood everything she said. "Yes! Alejandro, he's evil! He's pretending to be-"

"Oh, would you look at the time!" Chris shoved Bridgette and her pole off the plane before she finished her warning.

I texted Geoff after the elimination ceremony. _Has the latest ep aired?_

Geoff texted back: _We get it about an hour after it happens live. What happened? You promised you'd look out for her._

_You can't put this on me! _I wrote. _I was busy doing the challenge, and besides, Alejandro was flirting with everyone – I didn't know he was going to manipulate Bridge!_

It took another ten minutes for Geoff to reply. _I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at him. And how could Bridgette do that?_

_She's really sorry. _I replied. _At least let her explain before you dump her._

I was glad Team CIRRRRH wasn't in Economy Class with us. I wouldn't have been able to stop myself from glaring daggers at Alejandro. I was already on thin ice, so to speak. I'd gone to the confessional just after elimination, and I'd heard Alejandro talking inside. _"..._expendable. They all are. Some will prove to be more challenging than others. But one by one, they'll all go down." It was hard to pretend I'd only just gotten there and hadn't heard a word when he opened the door.

Finally, I made my confessional. "I'll miss you, Bridge." I clenched my fists. "What Bridgette did was wrong, I know that. But I know perfectly well who the real villain is in this case, and I'm on to you!"

**We'll pick up next episode. Thanks for reading, and now could you please review?**


	34. Chapter 34: One Friendly Villain

**Next chapter here and ready to be read! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132, and the guest reviewer.**

Losing Bridgette put our team at a disadvantage in numbers, and as if that wasn't enough, DJ was feeling down. The only thing he'd done this season was disintegrate a mummy dog, knock a bird out of the sky and kick a baby seal. He was sure the mummy dog had cursed him, no matter how many times the rest of us told him he didn't. Still, we were all pretty down. Except Lindsay.

"Enough downy talk, you guys!" she insisted. "We aren't quitters, we're fighters! And we're winners!"

"Girl's got fire in her eyes!" Leshawna said approvingly.

I grinned. "You're right, Lindsay. We can win our next challenge, I know we can." I frowned for a moment, remembering what Bridgette had told me. "By the way, did you hear what Bridgette was saying before Chris shoved her out of the plane? I'd been talking to her earlier, and I was starting to get used to deciphering what she was saying with the pole still in the way."

My team shook their heads.

"Well," I said, "Bridgette lost out, and she told me that it's because she was manipulated and drawn in by A-"

"Ladies? I took the liberty of smuggling a few things out of First Class."

Damn it! I try to warn my team about Alejandro when his team's up in First Class, only for him to appear with some of the First Class snacks for the rest of us.

"I better not." Lindsay said politely. "I might break ou – is that a Snuffers bar?" She accepted the chocolate eagerly.

Okay, fine. I didn't refuse it, either. It's not like accepting a snack from First Class was going to hurt. Besides, if I refused, Alejandro could have taken that as an indication that I didn't trust him. I needed to be a good actress.

He went to Team Amazon next. "Sierra, my former teammate." he smiled, holding out another snack. "I smuggled this one out just for you."

Heather stepped in front of Sierra. "Well, she doesn't want it!" she informed him fiercely. "We never trust the enemy, especially the excessively disgustingly flirty ones!"

"No thanks...enemy." Sierra said with a giggle after she spoke. She still sounded so perky.

At that moment, Chris called us to the common area. There was a lifeboat there, which all of us sat in.

"Sweet boat, guy!" Tyler complimented. "Right, Lindsay?"

"Um...sure." Lindsay said. "Dave, is it?" Tyler's face fell. Within the last couple of weeks, she'd so far called him three names, and none of them were right.

Chris was the only one who got a lifejacket "Because there's fourteen of you, and only one valuable me." The floor of the plane opened up, and we hurtled down into open water, driving towards...the Statue of Liberty?

"Omigosh, New York!" I squealed, just like I was Katie or Sadie. But I'd dreamed of coming to New York for years.

"I know! Do you know how many stores are in this city?" Lindsay squealed next to me.

Once we got out of the water and onto the dock, Chris explained the challenge to us. The first part, at least. We had to all climb up the Statue of Liberty. Once our whole team was up, we would grab the baby carriage tied up there that was in our team colour, and go back down.

"LOL, Chris, I think your mischievous spirit makes the game." gushed Sierra.

"Thank you, Sierra." Chris said. "It's nice to be appreciated."

"Appreciated? I love you! I always did, even waaaay back when you were making those terrible movies about talking cats." Sierra said, making us all snicker. "I was even going to call my first fan club the Christians, but that name was already taken."

Chris was starting to look uncomfortable. I glanced around, and I thought I saw Alejandro smirk. I wondered why, but as long as it wasn't anyone on my team, I was okay with it. Unless it involved shoving someone off the statue once we were at the top, but no one would be that ruthless...anyway, it was probably something to do with Sierra.

After we'd gotten the carriage and gone down, we would take a boat in our team colour to Central Park – there were buoys marking the way.

"So when do we go shopping?" Lindsay asked.

"You don't." Chris told her.

"NOOOOO!"

DJ started climbing first. "Ow!" he exclaimed. "What are these ropes made of?"

"Steel wool. Strong and rough, just like the Big Apple!" Chris answered. Because we could pull the ropes to get our team up faster, we decided to have our strongest teammate go first, then the rest of us in order of weight. DJ was our strongest team member, and Leshawna was a lot plumper than Lindsay and I, so she climbed next. I followed, while Lindsay, who was model-thin and waif like, was last.

We were the second team to get to the top, even though both teams had more people than us. Heather was just grabbing the carriage for Team Amazon, and Team CIRRRRH was still trying to pull Owen up.

"I'll get the carriage." DJ volunteered, carefully walking up Lady Liberty's crown to the edge, where our yellow carriage was hanging. Finally, we slid down a fireman's pole, and jumped into our boat.

We even passed Team Amazon, since Cody had fallen out of their boat and they had to go back for him.

"We're totally in first place!" squealed Lindsay.

"But taking a boat to Central Park doesn't make sense!" Leshawna objected.

I thought about it. "Yeah, that's true! The park's, like, right in the middle of the city!"

Maybe that's why the next buoy led into the sewer. No, I'm serious. It was disgusting, and dangerous. Ever heard the myth about giant alligators living in the sewers? Yeah, turns out it was true.

We reached the dock where Chris was waiting first, with Team CIRRRRH right behind us.

"Where's Heather's boat?" wondered Alejandro, just as an alligator coughed out Team Amazon and their boat.

Chef made the alligator sign a waiver (no, seriously), and it was time for the next part of the challenge. Except Sierra started gushing to Chris about something else before we could get into it. "You are such a brilliant commander! That's why you always stood out in your boy band!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa – Chris was in a boy band?" Owen said.

Sierra sang a few lines to prove her point, although Chris obviously wanted to move on. Probably because all of the stuff Sierra was telling us about Chris...she made it sound amazing, but it just made Chris look ridiculous.

"I really admire the way you never let mockery get to you." Sierra went on obliviously. "I'll have to include that in your obituary. I already have a draft, wanna hear? 'Chris McLean was born in 1978'-"  
"That is it!" Chris bellowed furiously. "Zip it! PERMANENTLY!" Sierra obediently went quiet.

Our next task was to pick a person to ride in the baby carriage – the "baby" – and then each team would take a different path to the pond in the middle of the park. Since we arrived at the dock first, we got the shortest path. There would be three apples in the pond, and one of us would have to dive in and grab one without using our hands. Then we'd run to the finish line. Whoever got there first won.

Lindsay volunteered to ride in the carriage. "I love it when people call me baby."

"Make a mental note of that, bro." I heard Noah muttering to Tyler.

Tyler patted his tracksuit pockets. "I don't have a pen." What did he think "mental" note meant?

Noah was Team CIRRRRH's baby, and Cody was the baby for Team Amazon.

And then, it was time for the music carriage. I think there were speakers hidden in the carriages, because as we ran, we could hear all of the other competitors singing.

Courtney began the song. "_What's not to love about New York City, the taxis honk out a New York ditty_

_The crime is high, the pigeons fly, what's not to love about New York?"_

"_The lights are brighter, the fun is funner, the bagels are bagelier and the bums are bummer," _Owen sang.

"_The dirt and grime make every alley shine, what's not to love about New York?"_

"_The stores and the fashion," _Lindsay sang, "_Big shows where stars cash in,_

_It's crazy cause the city never sleeps!"_

"Dance break!" DJ called out, and began dancing...at least until Leshawna started dancing. Much as I liked her, she had one delusion, that she was good at dancing. Actually, she'd been in a dance challenge last season, and only won because she was up against Trent, who pretended he twisted his ankle so Gwen's team would win.

"For the love of dance, STOP!" Lindsay and I called out together.

You wouldn't believe it, but our short path didn't give us the advantage. Our teams were neck and neck, and all we had to do was grab a giant apple and get to the finish line. We had to decide who would dive in.

Leshawna shook her head. "My hair!"

"My lip gloss!" added Lindsay.

"My shoes!" I said. They would be ruined if I swam in them. Not like jumping around on icebergs didn't ruin them, but anyway.

"Fine, but it we lose, it's not my fault." DJ told us. While he dived in, I heard a very interesting conversation going on.

"Central Park is _so _romantic, don't you find?" Alejandro commented to Heather.

"Whatever." she replied. "I know you've been messing with Sierra's head, so back off or you'll wish you had."

"My wish doesn't involve backing off."

"Ugh, just go play with your stupid team and leave us alone!"

"You're beautiful when you play hard to get."

Much as I hated Heather, I had to give her props for that. She didn't know what I knew, and yet, she already seemed to hate him – well, apparently he'd done something to Sierra, but she wasn't going to be eliminated.

At that moment, Alejandro went to leave Heather alone, and saw me watching. He instantly switched on a charming smile and came over. "So how are things going for your team?" he asked, as if he actually cared.

"Not great." I muttered, trying not to act suspicious. "I miss having Bridgette with us. She's one of my best friends, especially since her boyfriend is also my brother." I kept my cool, and then smiled at the other competitor. "I'm just going to have to stay strong and focus."

By this time, DJ had begun dragging our apple back, pulling at the stalk with his teeth.

Unfortunately, he was stopped by a bunch of snapping turtles, which all attacked him. But he got the apple back, although a turtle did get hurt. DJ gently picked it off his clothes and put him back in the pond...where it was eaten by a giant turtle.

Believe it or not, we were only just saved from being last. Team Amazon won, and Team CIRRRRH came last when they realized their carriage had been switched. Alejandro had to run back with the one they had and exchange it for the one with Noah in it.

"You're facing elimination for the first time." Chris told the team. "But...you won't have to go through with it! This was just a reward challenge!"

Our team frowned. "I can't believe it!" I whispered. "I get excited because I think someone on that team will get kicked off, and then no one does!"

During the plane ride, I, of course, didn't get to warn my team about Alejandro, since his team was in Economy Class with us. However, I went to the cargo hold so I could call Bridgette.

"How are you?" I asked.

I could hear Bridgette sniffling on the other end of the line. "I'm at the Aftermath studio with everyone else, but Geoff's avoiding me. I know he'll have to talk to me sooner or later, but how can I apologize when he won't even look at me?"

"Geoff tends to avoid messy situations at first." I told her. "You know he has a right to be mad at you, but he will talk to you eventually. Just be patient. You can try to get him to talk to you during the Aftermath show. Are they still doing the musical thing?"

"I think so." she answered.

"Try to get an apology song ready!" I suggested. "They might let you sing your own song if it looks like it's spontaneous, even if it isn't. You could ask Trent to help you out with the lyrics and music, he should have some ideas."  
"I...I don't know, Elle." Bridgette said softly. "I know that he has a right to be mad and he might even see this as dumping me, but I...I can't see my future without him in it!"

"You'll never know until you try." I told her. "And of course it might not work – heck, I'm not sure why I'm not mad at you myself – but you have to try."

"Okay." Bridgette murmured. "Thanks, Elle."

As I rang off, I thought of something. I found Trent's number in my phone, and quickly texted something:

_Help Bridgette get Geoff back for the Aftermath? Apology song. Good luck on the Aftermath._

**We'll pick up on the Aftermath next chapter. Hope you enjoyed this one.**


	35. Chapter 35: Challenge-Thrower's Crush

**Please enjoy! Thanks to the Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132, and the guest reviewer.**

The minute I knew the Aftermath show had finished airing, I called Bridgette again. She sounded happier.

"Elle, I can't really talk right now, I'm kind of in the middle of something..." she began, and at that moment there were kissing sounds in the background. "Wait a minute." I heard her say. "Elle's calling."

Another voice came over the line. "Hey, sis, how's it going?" I heard Geoff ask.

"Okay, I guess." I said. "You know what the show's like. So...are you and Bridgette okay?"

It was one of the most lucky things to happen to Bridgette this season – she'd managed to win Geoff back. When I requested, they even sent me a sound clip of Bridgette's song, which was absolutely beautiful.

The four of us members of Team Victory were still pretty down. DJ was depressed because of the turtle he'd put back in the pond getting swallowed by the giant one, I was down because I couldn't see any way to warn my team about Alejandro before we got to our next destination (and Leshawna and Lindsay clearly liked him), and while the other girls were more positive, none of us were happy about not having won a single challenge, even though we hadn't lost the last one.

We were dropped off in the snow-topped mountains of Germany.

"Hi, Darryl!" Lindsay greeted Tyler happily.

"It's me, Tyler!" he corrected. "Season One – you and I were together!" Lindsay had gone on and on about Tyler in the second season, but now he was here, she didn't even remember what he looked like.

The next words out of her mouth were "You must have me confused with someone else. The only guy I was ever into on this show was Tyler, and he's never coming back."

Chris wanted us to sing as a mini-challenge – avoid the Songalanche. To avoid an avalanche, we had to keep the singing at a low volume.

I didn't really listen to the first part of the song. I could sort of vaguely hear Noah, Owen, Heather, Gwen and Courtney singing something, but I only really snapped into attention when I realized Alejandro was singing a line straight to Leshawna.

"_When you don't hold back and lead the pack, truly there is nothing stopping you, you, you." _he sang.

In reply, Leshawna sang "_Swimming in your eyes, it's butterflies and suddenly there's nothing I can't do. _Sorry, Harold..." she added. We all knew Harold was probably watching.

I stepped in between them and addressed Alejandro, unable to stop myself. "_Get out of her face, it's a disgrace, I won't let it happen to her too."_

Leshawna gave me a puzzled scowl, and I saw Alejandro's eye twitching before he appeared just as confused.

"_Wait," _sang Lindsay, "_Something's itching in my brain, someone's back in the game!  
My former flame, and Tyler's your name!" _She ran to the boy in the red tracksuit and threw her arms around him. "_You're Tyler just the same, oh, Tyler, Tyler, Tyler, Tyler, back you came!"_

"You remember me?" Tyler said. Lindsay nodded happily. "She remembers me! YES!"

I would've been happy, if it wasn't for the fact that he caused the avalanche. At least it made me realize what I'd done – I'd been so desperate to stop Leshawna from falling into the same trap as Bridgette that I'd blown my own cover.

We had to begin a long trek back up the mountain to start the day's challenge.

"Great news, guys!" Lindsay said joyfully. "Tyler's back!"

Leshawna just acted as if this was surprising to her, adding to DJ and I that it was easier to go along with Lindsay's obliviousness.

"Anyway, Elle," she said, fixing me with a hard stare, "What were you saying in the song?"

I glanced towards Team CIRRRRH before I answered. Alejandro was probably too far away from me to hear, so I said "I've been meaning to warn you guys since after the Yukon. Remember I was saying about how Bridgette was kicked off? I didn't have time to tell you then, because Alejandro came in with those snacks from First Class. And I couldn't tell you while he was there, but..." I lowered my voice, "He caused Bridgette to get kicked off. It's his fault she got stuck to that pole."

Leshawna looked skeptical. "How do you figure?"

"Bridgette told me." I answered. "I tried to tell you what she was saying before she took the Drop Of Shame. She was trying to warn us about Alejandro. What I said in the song was to leave you alone, because there's no way I'm letting you get kicked off by falling into his trap. With the way he flirted with you in Japan, I'm worried that you're next."

Leshawna looked thoughtful. "Are you sure that's what Bridgette said?"

"Positive." I answered. "I didn't want to believe it either, but did you see him flirting with Heather in New York? She told him to back off, which is what you need to do next time he flirts with you."

Our first challenge was waiting at the top of the mountain with us. There were three mounds of raw meat, each sitting next to a giant hand-powered grinder. Our job was to each make a giant sausage with it and ride it down a treacherous mountain.

We were all pretty successful at this one. DJ shoveled from the ground and I shoveled the meat he threw up into the grinder, while Leshawna turned the grinder, and Lindsay stuffed.

Team Amazon was having problems, because Sierra turned most of their meat into a statue of Cody and it accidentally slid down the mountain.

"Ha ha, Cody's got a tiny sausage!" Noah yelled out.

"At least my team has a sausage!" Cody called back, drawing attention to Team CIRRRRH's problem. Owen had eaten all the meat instead of stuffing like Alejandro had told him to. They were lucky Chris let them ride Owen down the mountain as the sausage. As for us...we took our own sausage down and came in second, although DJ ended up having another run-in with an animal. This time, it was a cute but vicious mountain goat that accidentally hit its head on a branch while DJ was holding it and it was suddenly left behind. Team Amazon lost, and as a result, for the next part of the challenge, someone had to wear lederhosen (Sierra volunteered, but Chris made Cody wear it)

Everyone was given rewards for making it down the mountain. Team CIRRRRH got helmets, we got fluffy hats ("Ooh, these are all the rage in Paris!" Lindsay squealed) and Team Amazon got Peter Pan hats.

Our elimination challenge concerned learning a traditional German dance. We didn't all have to dance – three on each of the other teams, and since we were at a number disadvantage, two on ours. Lindsay and I sat out in the end. On the other teams, there was Heather, Sierra and Cody for Team Amazon, and Alejandro, Owen and Noah for Team CIRRRRH.

"Remember," I reminded Leshawna, "Ignore Alejandro if he talks to you."

Oh, if only she'd listened to me! I was pretty distracted by Sierra's rhyme, at first. She was saying it as Lindsay and I watched the dancers.

"_One, two, three, slap my knee!" _Sierra chanted as she danced. "_My husband-to-be, his name is Cody!_

_Four, five, six, pick up sticks, my heart won't tick without my Cody fix!_

_Seven, eight, nine, straighten your spine, spin to see Cody looking so fine!_

_Ten, eleven, twelve, nothing rhymes with twelve, chicks want Cody but his butt's MINE!"_

But then Alejandro did start talking to Leshawna. He was talking very quietly, so I couldn't hear anything, but whatever it was made Leshawna reply "You're right, candy apple!" and dance even more enthusiastically. It made Heather scowl, and I saw her whisper something to Leshawna.

Leshawna laughed and I heard her say "You jealous he's paying attention to all this?"

"What?" Heather said, just as loudly. "Ugh! I hate that guy!"

The next part of the challenge had each person dancing on a podium, and trying to knock off someone else. First, Leshawna easily kicked Noah off. Then Alejandro sent Cody flying.

"CODY!" shrieked Sierra. She looked at DJ with fire in her eyes, and knocked him off. Heather didn't even have to try to get Owen off – he just fell.

Next, it was Alejandro vs Sierra, and Leshawna vs Heather.

"Stay on that platform, Leshawna!" DJ called.

"I'm not going anywhere!" she assured us.

"That's it, seize the day!" Alejandro called over to her.

"Ugh, she's not even on your team!" Heather yelled at him.

Leshawna glared at Heather and knocked her off the platform. "I'm gonna seize the YOU! YOU'VE HAD THIS COMING FOR THREE SEASONS!" I would've been fine with this, except that she leapt off the platform to beat Heather up, even knocking out her tooth. Since Sierra was still on the platform, it was only us, Team Victory, who couldn't possibly win.

I'm not sure exactly what happened, but Alejandro didn't even seem to try at the last minute, and Sierra won for her team, while we were getting sent to elimination again.

"Seriously, what happened?" I asked Leshawna. "You had to stay on the platform – you cost us the challenge! You could've waited for Sierra or Alejandro to knock each other off. Then we wouldn't have lost either way. We could've won!"

Nevertheless, Leshawna was shocked when she was the one deprived of her bag of peanuts. "What? But – but I'm fabulous!" she argued. "I seize the day!" I knew that she was just parroting what Alejandro had said to her, and I frowned.

"And we're out of time!" Chris said, giving Leshawna her parachute. One of my best friends stood at the edge of the door.

Suddenly, Leshawna gasped at something, something I couldn't see from her angle. "You!" she exclaimed, and she was soon tumbling out of the plane, screaming.

I ran up to see what she had gasped at, but I only caught a glimpse before the totem pole moved, covering the person. But I saw the caramel skin, the bracelet, the smirk.

I went straight to the confessional. "That's both of my best friends, gone! I told Leshawna to ignore Alejandro, I told her he was up to something! Okay, so maybe it doesn't seem like he did anything, but what was he saying to Leshawna? I'll bet it was what made her able to disregard the game and beat up Heather...although that _was _entertaining. I swear, just because he knows I know things doesn't mean he can kick me off. It's a good thing we're not on the same team, so if his manipulation doesn't work on me, he can't use the good old-fashioned method of voting and kick me off. At least, not until the merge..."

**Anyone else confused about exactly how Alejandro "robbed Leshawna of her fabulous soul"? I wasn't sure, and then when I showed my sister the episode, she asked me what he'd done. I had to dissect everything to understand it at all. Please review!**


	36. Chapter 36: Team First-Victory

**Elle isn't going down just yet, and she wants that victory that her team should have. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132 and the guest reviewer.**

The next plane trip would've been a lot worse if not for one incident that I almost started giggling at. Owen had been having a nightmare, and just before he woke up, his arms were flailing around. Izzy, on one side of him, managed to duck, but Alejandro, who was on the other side, ended up being punched in the eye and had to wear an eyepatch. I had to hold back my giggles – I was aware that any more slip-ups like the song would confirm to Alejandro that I didn't trust him, and I didn't want him to know. He was concentrating on me as it was, giving me one of his charming smiles every so often, and at one point, coming over to sit with me and asking me questions, with several compliments thrown in. I'd cut it short, feeling a bit uncomfortable. "Um...you know I'm dating DJ, right?" I said. "It feels like you're flirting with me."

Alejandro had immediately looked apologetic and said "Oh, I'm sorry if I was being too forward for you. As I told you in Japan, this is just the way I am."

I nodded and said "It's okay. If you don't mind, I'd like to talk to my team. No offense, but we're not on the same team."

"I feel bad about voting Leshawna off." DJ remarked I was sitting curled up next to him, while Lindsay sat beside us. "All she did was hurt Heather. I'm hurting innocent animals. How long can a curse last, anyway?"

"DJ, stop beating yourself up." I told him. "It's all a string of stupid coincidences, not a curse. I'm more concerned about us losing every elimination challenge."

Lindsay had been busy exchanging waves and smiles with Tyler, but she looked over at us and put her hand on top of DJ's. "DJ, Elle, cheer up! If Tyler can come back, anything can happen! Maybe we'll become the best team ever!"

"Here's the best team ever..." Chris put his head in to check on us. "...is exactly what I will say when I get into the First Class compartment." He immediately left.

Our next stop was the Amazon. "I sure hope none of the Amazons said that this might be lucky for them!" Chris said over the intercom. "That'd be disastrous!"

Our challenge was to hike through the jungle to Macchu Pichu, a place special to the Inca empire. We'd also have to set up camp for the night, and just basically survive. To win, we'd have to find a golden treasure hidden in the ruins. Oh, and Chris also told us to watch out for the Zing-Zings, an ancient tribe who had never encountered modern humans.

For the millionth time this season, we got off to a good start, just like we had been okay in Japan, pretty good in the Yukon, not bad in New York, and the only team with a good sausage in Germany. I couldn't get complacent – if we did, the other teams would beat us again.

We came to a fork in the road pretty early. "Eeney, meeny, miney...left?" suggested Lindsay.

We met Chris at a wooden platform with a zip-line over a chasm with a lake. "Welcome, Tiny Victory!" he said. "I'd say Team, but you're more of a trio." As it was, we were in first place, and because of that, we got to use the T-bar on the zip-line, which the other teams who went left wouldn't get to do (I wasn't sure which way the other teams left.

So the three of us found a way to all hang on to each other, and then DJ grabbed the bar and we slid down.

"First plaaaaace!" Lindsay called out happily.

To be honest, Lindsay was much better company than she'd ever been before. I hadn't been on TDA long enough to talk to her properly, and on TDI, she was always with Heather, so this was the first time I'd really talked to her. "Okay, there's something I started talking about in Germany, but never got to finish." I said. "Do you remember what I warned Leshawna about last time?"

My teammates shook their heads. "Right." I said. "Since I think it's just the three of us right now, I should say so. Lindsay, this is really important to you especially – if Alejandro talks to you, do NOT listen to ANYTHING he says. He can't be trusted."

"Who?" Lindsay asked.

I sighed. "Okay, hot guy? Spanish? Wears a bull necklace? Green eyes – any of this sound familiar?"

"A little bit..." Lindsay said slowly. She smiled. "Oh, right, I remember! I'm not interested in him, though – Tyler's back, and I'm loyal to him!"

I smiled at Lindsay. "I know, Linds. It's just that you seemed to be reacting to him flirting earlier on."

"That was before Tyler came back!" Lindsay said cheerfully. "He's nice and all, but I'm not a cheater!"

I turned to DJ. "I don't think that Alejandro will cause any trouble with you, but you should be on your guard, just in case. And another thing – keep me close. I'm not letting him get close to me, but if he tries it on, I want him to get the message loud and clear – that I'm not interested. It obviously didn't work with Bridgette, but I'm going to be more insistent. It better work with me."

"So where did you get this stuff from, Elle?" DJ asked. "I mean, not that I don't believe you, but what actually happened? I didn't see anything."

I sighed. "Okay, let's start with Bridgette. All I saw was him helping her across the ice. Then she told me that he actually got them into an accidental kiss at the time. And she did tell him about Geoff, but he just basically disregarded it and got her mixed up. Then he got her to a meeting point, told her NOT to go to the finish line like we planned, and gave her his shirt because she was cold. Then she was about THIS close from kissing him before his sled got to the meeting point, but he pulled away and she ended up kissing the pole instead..." I trailed off. "I was pretty mad at her for it, too, but he was the one who made her do it."

"And Leshawna?" DJ asked.

"I don't think he planned for her to jump off the platform like she did, but I think he was trying to distract her so Heather would knock her off. And I think he wanted to fight Heather last – it would explain why he lost to Sierra so easily after Heather was out." I gave a sigh. "I wish Sierra would've knocked him off first. Then we wouldn't have lost another teammate."

By nighttime, we were still in the lead, and Chris appeared again to give us bananas as a reward for being in first place.

At that moment, our emergency walkie-talkie crackled, and a hyper voice came through. "Chris, Chris, Chris, it's Gwen! Captured by the Zingies, tied up with my hands in Cody's pants, this trouble is big!"

"Walkie-talkies are for emergencies only!" Chris said into our walkie-talkie.

Gwen repeated what she'd already said, and then we heard Tyler yelling into his team's walkie-talkie. "Way to go, Cody!"

"Thank you!" Cody's voice answered.

Courtney and Heather explained that they were tied up and being held at spearpoint by the Zing-Zings and that Gwen had accidentally injected herself with Cody's allergy epipen.

"We're in first place!" Lindsay squealed into the walkie-talkie. "Hi, Tyler!"

Chris made Team Amazon sing the song for the episode, and then left our team.

DJ's "curse" struck again. A bunch of tiny monkeys kept climbing all over him, and he swatted them away so fiercely that we had to bandage them and creep away...which didn't go so well. They all woke up and began attacking DJ, again.

We still reached Machu Picchu first out of all the teams. Team CIRRRRH was right behind us, but they couldn't start searching because Owen wasn't with them. Noah, Izzy and Tyler had to sit around and wait, and about a minute after Alejandro came back with Owen in tow, I heard Lindsay squeal.

"I found it!"

Sure enough, Lindsay had won our first challenge for us, and soon we were sitting on the couch in First Class.

"Would it be okay if I-" Lindsay began.

"Asked Tyler to come join us up here?" DJ finished. "Sure."

I grinned. "It's only fair that all of us should have our favourite people here."

Lindsay gave me a hug, kissed DJ on the cheek and ran off, calling "Tyler? Tyler!"

Lindsay spent most of the evening making out with Tyler on one of the single seats. I grinned at DJ. "They wouldn't notice if a hurricane started up inside the plane." I said wickedly. "Wanna copy them?"

DJ looked unsure, but he said "Why not? We might as well take the only chance we'll have."

Team Amazon, by the way, was lucky. Chris sent them to elimination, but he was just tricking them and no one went home. Later on, I discovered that Heather had gotten the most votes, but sadly, she was still with us.

**I was so glad that Team Victory got a win at last! Please review!**


	37. Chapter 37: Lindsay's Favourite Country

**So...Paris next, right? Oh wow, the bread there is SO amazing, and Notre Dame is the most amazing cathedral EVER. But we're going to the Louvre! Thanks for reviewing, Ali6132 (I think I wrote in a previous chapter that Sierra's blog refers to it as "Delle", but maybe it should be a mix of Elle and DJ's unshortened name, Devon Joseph. Develle?) and Elizabeth Life Stone.**

The next day, Chris kicked Tyler out of First Class, saying it didn't matter if Lindsay wanted him in there, he wasn't on our team. The whole day was spent in First Class, while we were heading to our next destination.

Lindsay was sitting in one of the chairs, getting a facial. "Wow, I'm so relaxed, I think my brain is even asleep!" she remarked, accidentally spilling some coffee onto her top. "Yep, totally asleep."

I didn't bother with the facial, and just lay back in one chair, nibbling on a warm chocolate chip cookie, then I went into the confessional. "This is great. Well, kind of. DJ's started saying he wants to go home and stop hurting animals, but I really want him to stay. Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Hot _has _to lose the next elimination challenge! I will be forever in that team's debt if they vote Alejandro off!"

It was dark when the plane suddenly started jolting, and all three of us started screaming. There was a brief moment of peace, when Izzy's voice, in an imitation of Chef, came over the intercom. "Ahem, this is your captain speaking. If you'll look out your window, you'll get to see what happens when a plane does a somersault!"

"Gimme that!" Chef's voice snapped. "Uh, y'all might wanna hang onto something heavy!"

I wrapped my arms around my chair, screaming like crazy. When the plane finally crashlanded, my throat was actually scratchy.

We had landed in Paris, in the French canal. Chef had meant to land somewhere else, but he hadn't managed to get Izzy to stop messing with the controls.

Lindsay was excited again "There's only one guy I want to share this with, the guy I've been dreaming about since we've been apart!" she squealed. "Where's my Tyler?"

"Hey, Linds." Tyler said.

"Are you sure that's you? 'Cause you look slightly different in my head."

"_Everything _looks slightly different in her head." Alejandro muttered. I couldn't help a giggle escaping, while Noah nodded at him.

"Do you always wear a tracksuit?" Lindsay asked Tyler. "Oh, it doesn't matter! Us being here only means one thing!"

"I know!" agreed Tyler. "I love-"

"SHOPPING!" Lindsay cried obliviously. "I can pick out new clothes for you!"

"There's no time for shopping." Chris told her, like he had in New York. "First challenge is about to start!Everyone inside the Louvre." He pronounced it wrongly, and Courtney corrected him, but what did it matter? We had a challenge to complete!

Chris explained that we would be looking for statues – our team had the Thinker, Team CIRRRRH had Venus de Milo, and Team Amazon had the statue of David. Also, it wouldn't be easy to find them. The statues were broken up and hidden around the gallery. We had to go the the courtyard and put them together once we'd found all of them.

"But the Thinker isn't located in the Louvre!" Alejandro pointed out. "And the statue of David isn't even in France!"

"Well, we're not using the real statues." Chris said. "They're priceless. Chef made some fake ones." Chef looked worried and ran off. What...

"I almost forgot the _twist _twist." Chris added. "Here's your motivation." He showed us three animals. The two biggest – a yeti and a bear – didn't seem interested in our team, but the other one was...

"Awww, look, DJ!" squealed Lindsay. 'It's that baby seal you accidentally ran over in the Yukon!" And it looked super pissed at all three of us. I wished Bridgette was still with us – she was pretty good with animals.

We found the Thinker pieces quite easily, but DJ broke off halfway through. He saw an Egyptian exhibit and thought he might find something to break his curse, leaving Lindsay and I to do the challenge.

"You know, after we win, we should totally go shopping together while we're here." Lindsay said brightly. "Did I ever tell you how much I love your style?"

I sighed. "Lindsay, I'd love to, seriously, but I don't think Chris will let us stay in Paris long enough for us to go shopping."

The other teams beat us to the courtyard, but Lindsay and I soon had the Thinker almost done. The other teams had accidentally put their pieces together and had to work out which pieces belonged to them and which to the other team. Plus, Izzy wasn't helping her team, Owen had disappeared, and Sierra and Cody were gone, too.

"DJ, we're totally going to win!" squealed Lindsay as I picked up the last piece. "Or...I guess Elle and I'll win!"

We would've won if DJ hadn't come speeding towards us on some kind of motor, getting beaten up by the yeti, the bear and the seal. He crashed straight into our statue, and Team Amazon won instead.

"And this week's losers are," Chris announced, "Not at all ironically any more, Team Victory!"

DJ started to cry. "Are you hurt?" Lindsay asked. "Or just sad that we lost again?"

I shook my head. "You wanted to go home, right, DJ?" I said. "I'll miss you, but I'll vote you off if you want me to."

DJ nodded. "These are happy tears. I'm going home."

But Chris wasn't having any. He obviously didn't want a predictable elimination, so he changed it. Basically, each of us had to pick a model and design an outfit for them. Loser got eliminated, second place winner was swapped to another team, and winner stayed in Team Victory.

"Tyler!" chose Lindsay. "I'm going with Tyler! He's my pick! Tyler is!"

I looked around at everyone, just as Cody led a crying Sierra back to us. "I know!" I said. "Can I have Sierra?" Hey, if DJ tried to lose, I'd still be in the game either way. And besides that, Cody managed to tell Sierra to stop crying and that he preferred her stalking him to her crying, and she instantly went back to her exuberant self.

"Hey, Sierra." I said. "So...will you be my model for the walk-off?" She nodded happily.

DJ had already picked Gwen, since he was trying to lose. Basically, the judges of the designs would be Chris and one person from each of the other teams.

I did have some fun choosing Sierra's hairstyle and clothes, even having Cody's face drawn on the back pocket of the dark denim wrap minidress I chose to keep her happy. I took advantage of what I had to work with, choosing a minidress because she was tall and thin, and having it dark blue to contrast with her vibrant hair.

Her hair was the most fun, since it was so long. I ended up giving her three braids, one down her back and one down each shoulder.

Besides Chris, the judges were Heather and Owen. Eh, could be worse.

I was second up, after Lindsay. She'd made Tyler wear something that looked like a bunch of paintings stuck together and his hair was curled upwards. Lindsay cheered, while Noah and Alejandro burst out laughing.

No one laughed at Sierra, but they gasped. Later on that evening, I heard Cody in the confessional. "Okay, so she's still scary. But Elle made Sierra look so different! If she'd been dressed like that and I met her before Gwen, I would've hit on her."

DJ didn't even try, just letting Gwen wear his shirt as a dress. Then the judges gave their opinions.

"I don't know what Lindsay was thinking." Heather stated. "All that surrealism – it makes me nauseous."

Owen spoke next. "I have to say that Lindsay's design just made me hungry. There were pictures of pheasants and I think some fruit or something. Yeah, definitely hungry."

"I can't picture myself wearing water lilies." Chris said. "I mean, yeah, I've worn them, but I didn't like it."

My turn. "Boring." Heather said flatly. "But not bad. If ever in doubt, go for the classics."

"I didn't even know who it was for a moment!" Owen said. "That's gotta be good."

Chris nodded. "Yeah, a bit boring, but Elle definitely knew what she was working with. And what about DJ?"

"Dry, dull, uninspiring, not a hint of effort with the presentation." Heather began. "But enough about Gwen, the shirt was a ten!"

"I agree." said Chris. "Model sucked, shirt good. I'd wear it!"

Owen said he wasn't paying attention, but he liked DJ's shirt.

Shockingly, DJ won, and Lindsay was gone. I was going to be swapped.

"But first..." Chris said. "Teams, you'll have to vote on how many of you want Elle on your team. The team that has the most votes gets her. Team Amazon?"

Everyone except Courtney raised their hands. I heard Heather hissing at Courtney "Numbers advantage!"

"An advantage of several wouldn't make me ask that sneaky so-called _sweetheart _to join our team!" Courtney retorted.

"Love you too, Princess!" I teased her. "And I don't get sneaky without a call for revenge on someone."

"Team I Am Super Super Super Hot?" Chris asked. All five of them raised their hands, and it was decided.

I still hugged Lindsay goodbye, but I let her say her goodbye to Tyler alone.

**So Elle's on a different team now! I always intended her to switch here, but letting her in the fashion design challenge was a last minute idea. Please review!**


	38. Chapter 38: NewfoundTeammates

**So how will Elle fare on her new team? Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone (well, at least they're still on the plane together) and Ali6132.**

I went to sit with DJ on the next flight, in spite of being on a different team.

"Hey, Elle, you're on our team now!" Izzy said brightly. "Come sit with us!"

I shrugged. "I know I'm on your team, but I want to stay right here." I smiled up at DJ.

My team wanted to make an alliance with DJ. I noticed Owen and Noah saying something to each other late into our next flight, and then Owen spoke up. "Hey, DJ! Uh, hey. You wanna go for hotdogs with my buddy Noah? He said your legs are nice." He whistled. DJ gave him a weird look, and I giggled.

"Yeah, because that's exactly what I told him to say." Noah said sarcastically.

"One cannot blunder into an alliance, friends." Alejandro spoke up.

Tyler scowled at DJ. "Why couldn't you lose so Lindsay could still be here?"

"Anger also doesn't help."

"Listen, I'm sorry, I tried, okay?" snapped DJ. I'd never seen him really angry before. Upset, several times, but angry? He was usually so sweet and sensitive. "But you only have to put up with me for one more day."

"Going somewhere, DJ?" Alejandro questioned.

"I'm losing the next challenge!"

"What?" the new voice came from above. An overhead locker opened, and out fell Heather. She'd been spying on us, but she lied and said something about dropping her pen, and then gave Owen a piece of paper, calling it a fashion ticket. "Your socks reek!"

"Oh, am I wearing socks?" Owen said. "I can't even see my feet!" I sure hoped he was wearing socks. Owen created enough of a stench around without more hygiene don'ts.

We landed in the water, and Chef shoved us out of the plane, Heather still holding a cushion from First Class. Before I could swim over to a struggling DJ, she threw the cushion to him, and he was okay.

"Care to join me in an alliance?" Heather asked him.

Alejandro tapped her on the shoulder. "You're asking him that now?"

"You're just jealous because you didn't think of it!"

"Actually, I would have asked him before delivering the cushion, but you do what's right for you!"

I tilted my head. "Are you saying you'd let him drown if he didn't join said alliance?"

"Of course I wouldn't, Elle." Alejandro said calmly. "I was just making the point to Heather that an alliance would seem more tempting if the cushion and the alliance were a package deal."

I pretended to accept his answer, but still watched him carefully. I wasn't sure whether I believed that. Sure, he hadn't killed anyone, but leaving Bridgette to possibly get frostbite spoke for how ruthless he could be.

Chris came up in a boat and said something in a weird accent.

Sierra gasped, working out what was going on. "It must be Newfoundland!" Apparently, it was where Chris' was born.

"Birthplace of Canada's beautifullest host." Sierra sighed.

"Aw, thanks!" Chris said. "It's just a hop and a skip that-a-way!" I couldn't see anything in that direction, but...okay.

The first part of the challenge was for each team to get into our provided dinghy and row to shore. DJ, being alone, got the advantage of a motor.

I could hear Courtney telling her team what to do, no matter how far I swam away from her. "Okay, listen up, Amazons! If we swim in a V-formation like geese, we'll be faster!"

All my new team did was just swim to the dinghy and hop in. Alejandro was first in, and helped up the rest of us. But Owen was too slow, so Izzy had to use the net to pull him in. "You're quite the catch, Big O! Welcome to my crew!"

Chris explained the next part of the challenge, once DJ was also in his boat and Team Amazon was there (DJ had only reached his boat accidentally, after very nearly accidentally choking a killer whale). The first two teams to reach land would compete in the next part, which the other team wouldn't. Oh, and if we caught some seafood along the way, we got a special reward.

We were lucky enough to have Izzy on our team, who was a master at catching fish. On Team Amazon's boat, Gwen sat there with a fishing rod, catching nothing.

"See you on land!" Alejandro called as we passed Team Amazon, Tyler and Noah paddling like crazy.

I worked with Izzy to pull in fish. First, we got a lobster. Izzy picked it up. "Hey, Snappy! Welcome to the Izzy Cruise! Tell your friends!" It reached out to pinch her, but she dodged. "Hey, hey, hey, Snappy!" she said sternly, then giggled, letting Owen take it.

"Does anybody have any butter?" he asked.

"Do not even think about it, friend." Alejandro warned.

"Can I think about tartar sauce?"

I turned to Owen. "Stop thinking about food, please." I said in a more agreeable tone of voice. "This thing is coming to land with us." I still saw Owen lick it when he thought no one was looking, but hey, no one could tell. It's not like _we_ were going to eat it.

Soon, it was time to sing again.

I heard DJ saying something happy. "If I don't sing, I'm going home! Please start the song."

And we did. Alejandro sang the first line. "_We're heading down to Newfoundland, that rocky eastern shore!"_

"_I'll have the shrimp, mussels, cod and the lobster thermidor!" _Owen sang.

Over at Team Amazon, Gwen sang "_I can't get a thing to bite, so we better get there first!"_

"_Row harder, faster, both of you, for the win, work up a thirst." _Courtney sang to Sierra and Cody, who were rowing. "STROKE, STROKE, STROKE!"

"_It's a sea shanty, and it's darn catchy!" _sang a voice at the Team Victory boat. I hadn't realized it, but Heather had jumped on DJ's boat. "Yes!" she cried. "Come on, DJ, your turn!" DJ shook his head, smiling.

"_Izzy, you're a nut bar, but you sure can catch a fish!" _Tyler sang.

"_Thanks there B'y, you're right kind to my partner, he's Irish!" _Izzy sang. "Take him next, Elle, he's all yours!" She handed me the net. "_Yay!" _I sang the word, just to stay in the game.

"_Trying our best, Courtney, our arms are getting fried!" _sang Sierra and Cody.

"Courtney, do you see?" Gwen called, pointing at something up ahead.

"Could it be?" Courtney wondered. "_Steer hard, starboard side!"_

"_It's a sea shanty, and it's darn catchy!" _Heather sang again.

"_No you can't catch me, with the sea shanty!" _DJ sang, only realizing afterward that he'd sang when he hadn't meant to.

We got to the shore second, after DJ and Heather.

"Now will you be in an alliance with me?" Heather was asking him.

"Well played, ambitious one." Alejandro said as we got to shore.

Chris met us at the shore. "At an out-of-nowhere, come from behind finish, Team Victory is first!"

"I just cannot lose!" DJ cried.

"Heather, on the other hand," Chris continued, "Seems to be missing her whole team." Which meant it was six of us up against DJ in the next challenge. Team Amazon seemed to have disappeared, while Heather was made to clean the seafood we'd brought in, and shuck a bunch of clams, too. Our reward for bringing in seafood was watching her do so.

Our challenge was a relay. Izzy and Owen both had to finish a jugful of apple cider vinegar, then Chris' cousin Jerd would say a Newfoundland phrase, which Noah and Alejandro would have to translate. Finally, Tyler and I would both have to kiss a cod like it was someone we were in love with. DJ had to do all of those things, and it looked like I'd have to imagine him as the cod.

DJ tried to lose again, but Heather tricked him into drinking the vinegar while Izzy and Owen tipped their jug's contents into their mouth. Then he translated Jerd's first sentence as "I have to use the bathroom".

Then we had DJ's cod put in front of him. Oh, and I should add here that Alejandro was, for some reason, outside with the cod at the time. I remembered because Chef gave him a shove back into the room we were in.

Jerd gave us another sentence.

"Okay, I think he said something about Owen's butt." Noah stated, deadpan. Now we were on the same team again, I'd noticed he hadn't really changed much since the island. He participated a little more, but he was still snarky and sarcastic.

Alejandro guessed Jerd's words correctly. "The worst thing you can have in your head is...no teeth?" Jerd nodded.

I shut my eyes tightly shut, picked up my cod, focused on DJ's image in my mind, reminded myself how it felt to kiss him, and frenched the cod.

"Nice feeling, Elle!" Chris said brightly.

"Can I have a mint now?" I asked hopefully. Hey, it was worth a try.

Chris laughed. "Hahaha...no. Anyway, time for Tyler to follow your lead and pucker up."

"I don't think I can do this!" Tyler said. "It's a fish!"

"I can't either!" DJ added. "If I touch it, something bad is going to happen, I know it!"

"DJ, omigosh, look!" exclaimed Heather suddenly. She pointed to a little symbol on the fish...an Egyptian symbol. My cod had it too, but I kept quiet when Heather said it might be a sign, that if DJ did kiss the cod, his curse would be broken. To my utter surprise, Alejandro told him the same thing. I couldn't see what he was up to this time. He said something about his concern being for the animals, but whatever.

While they were talking to him, I talked to Tyler. "All you have to do is close your eyes, and pretend your cod is Lindsay." I told him.

And it worked. As DJ planted his lips onto the fish, Tyler did the same. The cod even slapped him, probably because he called it Lindsay. And so we tied with DJ for the win, just as the rest of Team Amazon ran in to discover they'd lost the challenge. Luckily, it was a reward challenge, so all they had to do was miss out on some chowder.

DJ had completely gotten his confidence back. He'd finally been around a few animals recently and they stayed unhurt, and he even kept his cod, calling her "Irene".

Before we left Newfoundland, I discovered what was going on with the fish. Alejandro left the chowder supper early after he found Owen's socks in his bowl. I crept out and followed him, seeing the camera was focused on him. The bucket of cod stood by the shore.

Alejandro turned to the camera. "Heather thinks she's clever," he said, "But it's all a matter of...waiting for your opportunity." He picked up the bucket. "Ah, the magic fish. It took me a couple tries. Fish are not the easiest medium for making art." With that, he let the fish go, and I ran back to the team to find Owen had finished my chowder.

Much as I distrusted and disliked Alejandro, he'd helped DJ get his confidence back. It was probably just so that he'd form an alliance with our team, but I had no problems with that. Maybe I wouldn't suffer from being on his team.

**Oh, Elle...don't worry, she still doesn't trust him. Please review!**


	39. Chapter 39: Oh My DJ

**Right, so now we are going to...Jamaica! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone (that's life, but rest assured, Elle will stick around for some time), Alex (thanks, and I have adjusted some eliminations later on in the story), Ali6132 (yes...also, Elle is going to REALLY hate Alejandro after this chapter) and the guest reviewer.**

I texted Bridgette, Geoff and Leshawna on the plane. Judging by their texts, they were all hanging out together with the other competitors. On my request, Leshawna let me know about some of the confessionals (I just wanted to keep up with what Alejandro was up to – the latest awful thing he did was when he tried to ditch Owen in the Amazon and when he had to go back for him, told him the others ditched him). On the first Aftermath show, Geoff's co-host had originally been Blaineley from Celebrity Manhunt, but she'd apparently been very upset when the drama was minimized by Geoff and Bridgette making up by making out at the end of the show (she spent the whole show bringing up Bridgette's little thing with Alejandro AND the pole). Bridgette was taking over as host, while Blaineley would act as the roving reporter, which, Geoff told me, was originally a role that they forced Eva into.

"Did she hurt anyone while reporting?" I asked when he told me.

"She did throw a microphone at some guy's coconuts." Geoff admitted. "No one could understand anything he was saying, so she got a bit impatient."

I was with DJ, but I couldn't get as close as usual, since he wouldn't let go of Irene's fishbowl. However, when he occasionally put her on the floor, he was actually not too shy about PDAs.

Finally, when Chris came in, Alejandro approached him. "DJ is the only member of Team Victory, but we're prepared to welcome him as a full time member of our team."

"Trying to have a bigger numbers advantage over Team Amazon?" Chris said, still smiling. "No dice."

"What if DJ chooses to swap, like Sierra and Izzy did in Egypt?" Alejandro tried.

"No more swaps, that's final." Chris answered.

"It's okay." DJ told my teammate. "The teams are probably gonna merge soon anyway."

"Wrong!" Chris called out. "Combo over, Chris out!"  
"It's okay. I'll survive." DJ continued. "My curse is gone, thanks to Irene. I even won the last challenge."

"Tied!" Tyler corrected.

"Exactly. If I keep this up, we might make it all the way to the finale together."

DJ hadn't noticed how annoyed Alejandro had been looking after Chris said DJ couldn't join our team, but now he smiled and said "I would love that."

I pulled DJ aside and whispered "DJ! Remember what I said in the Amazon – do not trust him. If you're not on our team, he sees you as an obstacle to the million, with the team being basically tools. He was doing exactly what Heather did in Newfoundland – just more subtly. Chris won't let you on our team, so just ignore anything he says to you."

DJ frowned. "Look, Elle, I appreciate you telling me all this stuff, but I think I can rely on him after he helped me in Newfoundland."

"Please, DJ!" I pleaded. "I don't want you to lose this game! You don't still want to go back home, right? The quickest way to get home is to listen to Alejandro. Look where it got Leshawna."

DJ nodded. "I know. But I'm not going to throw a challenge. There's no harm in just talking to him."

I sat with a few of my team members for a while, late into the flight. Tyler had been sitting with DJ and I, so I hung out with Izzy, Noah and Owen. After all, while Noah's laziness had annoyed me in the first season, his sarcasm was pretty funny, and while Izzy was tiring, she was fun too. And I couldn't dislike Owen, especially when he wasn't toxic.

"I've made up my mind." Owen muttered to Noah and I. "I'm gonna break up with Izzy once and for all."

"Finally!" Noah remarked.

"I still like her, but she's so-"

"Nutty?" Noah supplied. "As a ten-ton bag of pecans smothered in peanut butter encased in a cashew nut the size of China?"

Izzy, was, at that moment, gnawing on an oxygen mask, hanging upside down. "Tastes like shoe polish." she commented.

"Awww, she's happy." Owen sighed.

I put a hand on his shoulder. "Owen, you do what you think you should. If you feel you need to break up with Izzy, do it."

Just after that, would you believe it, the plane crashed. And it didn't just crash on a beach, oh no. Izzy had already jumped out of the plane with a parachute, and Owen had been sucked out, so the plane crashed on top of them, on the beach. Apparently we'd ran out of gas.

Izzy and Owen were sent to the infirmary. Owen seemed relatively okay. He had a concussion and seemed wobbly, but he'd definitely recover. I heard his one confessional, which was confused, but being awake to do it was a good sign. "Could you parents my phone and worry them not to tell...Santa?" He did fall unconscious after that, but he was still in better shape than Izzy. She was still unconscious when she was taken to the infirmary, although Chris assured us that they would be fine. Finally, we wanted to know where we'd crashed – it was Jamaica.

I grinned at DJ. "Your home, right?" I said. "You said you and your mom would move back here if you won back on the island, remember?"

DJ smiled back at me. "'Course I remember – I'm just surprised you remember. I only ever mentioned it to you once. But this place does feel like home."

"So..." I frowned. "Last time you thought of home was in the Yukon. You seem less...sad about it."

DJ shrugged. "I do think of Momma in this setting, but I'm too happy to cry about it. It just makes me more determined to win this thing for her."

Even though we hadn't landed in the right place, Chris was still making us do the challenge. First, we had to get our swimwear – in my case, my bikini – which, by the way, was sky blue and patterned with white rosebuds. I should mention here that the only swimwear that stood out was Alejandro's – all the girls wore regular bikinis and most of the guys wore regular swim shorts, but he had a speedo. I mean, seriously. Not that it didn't look good on him – just looked kind of out of place among the other guys.

The first part of the challenge was to dive into a pool full of sharks and electric eels and find the hidden golden chains Chef wore on karaoke night. The team that got them to the top of the small cliff we would dive off first got their team an advantage in the second part of the challenge.

"Tyler, it's your lucky day." Noah told our klutzy athlete. "You get to make all the jumps!"

Tyler seemed happy at first, but then frowned. "Wait..."

I saw Alejandro smirk in an amused way, and I let out a giggle. Hey, Tyler's dimwittedness was funny, and finding something in common with him could only help me cancel out anything he might've heard me say about him.

Tyler was useless, as usual, finding several things, but not what we wanted. I did get a little laugh at one point. Heather was poised perfectly to jump. "You have beautiful form." Alejandro complimented. This made her get distracted and fall off the cliff unprepared.

"Nothing personal!" Alejandro called after her.

It was Gwen who found the chains, but she was immediately shocked by several electric eels. Alejandro acted fast, making Tyler tag him. Then he jumped in, rescued Gwen, and came to shore with the chains around his neck. Unfortunately, Heather grabbed them off him immediately. "Thanks for the delivery!" she said, throwing the words "Nothing personal!" over her shoulder.

"I suppose I earned that." Alejandro commented with a smirk.

"We didn't!" Noah called down.

Once Alejandro was back up, I smiled at him tentatively. "That was a great move, even though it didn't work." I said brightly. I was about to address Chris, but he was busy with giving the camera the ending to cut to commercial. "Will Chef be able to fix the plane so we can leave here while I'm still young?"

"I don't know, did we land in the Seventies?" Noah snarked. Chris pushed him off the cliff. "Find out when we return, on Total! Drama! World Tour!"

After he was done, I smiled, saying, "Mind if I take Gwen to the infirmary?" She kept getting electric shocks even though the eels weren't still attacking her, and I knew she wanted out of the sun anyway.

Chris shrugged. "Sure. The next challenge won't start for another hour, so knock yourself out."

Yeah, I went there too because I wanted to check on Owen and Izzy. Owen seemed to have completely recovered and just needed the all-clear from a doctor. Izzy was awake, and writing stuff on the wall, muttering mathematical formulas to herself. Apparently the plane falling on her head had fixed some kind of blockage in her brain, making her super-smart.

Weirdly enough, some guys from the army took Izzy away, meaning she was leaving the competition due to her injury. Owen was very upset. "Oh, Izzy, why did I ever want to break up with you?"

"Logic." suggested the new smart Izzy. "We're incompatible, ergo the relationship must end. Adieu."

Gwen and I comforted Owen, something Chris did not help with, as he made us do the musical number.

Owen began the song. "_I miss the way Izzy said hello, by hoofing me in the kiwis._

_I miss the daytime, when Izzy moved so slow..."_

"_Oh-whoa..." _Gwen and I sang.

"_Cause other times," _Owen sang, "_She'd get freaky._

_Oh, Izzy, oh, Izzy, I, I miss you so!_

_Oh my Izzy, my little Izzy, why'd I ever let you go?"_

"Actually, she kind of dumped you." Gwen was quick to point her out.

Owen ignored her. "_I miss her smile, and the way she liked to bite...on my arm, when there was trouble, which was all the time._

_I miss the way she'd always say goodnight..."_

"_Oh-whoa..." _

"_...and boot me in the kiwis, double, ouch!_

_Oh, Izzy, oh Izzy, I, I miss you so!_

_Oh my Izzy, my little Izzy, why'd I ever let you go? Why'd I ever let you go?"_

Gwen and I patted Owen's shoulder. After that, the doctor gave him the all-clear and the two of us went to compete in the next challenge – riding longboards bobsled style on this crazy course Chris had set up. We would ride two to a board, three times. The team with the fastest time combined won.

Team Amazon started with a fair time, which Alejandro and Tyler's first run didn't beat, but DJ's time did. Again, with Owen and Noah, our team had the slowest time, with DJ's being the fastest.

I had to go up next, and for some reason, Chris made me pair up with Alejandro. Oh, joy. Okay, I would have been absolutely fine with that, if he hadn't picked that moment to mention what he'd done for DJ back in Newfoundland, when DJ was standing right behind us. He looked horrified at the revelations.

"DJ, you weren't supposed to hear that!" Alejandro said. "Sorry, my friend. I was only trying to help."

I didn't say it out loud, but in my thoughts, I screamed "_Yeah, I believe that! Like you had any use for DJ if he wasn't on our team, so you don't want him to be confident! You snake, don't you care about anyone else?"_

As it was, we not only beat Team Amazon's combined time, but _someone_ apparently damaged the course after we went on it, so not only did DJ's "curse" come back in full force, but he didn't finish his third lap of the course and lost as a result.

"I'll miss you so much!" I whispered to my boyfriend. "See what I mean when I said you couldn't trust Alejandro? I saw him talking about what he did to the fish, but think about it. When you thought you weren't cursed anymore, no animals got hurt. That whole curse was in your mind."

DJ smiled faintly. "I...I guess you're right, Elle. Thanks." He pulled me into a hug. "I'll miss you too. Try to win for us, okay?"

I grinned back. "At this point, I don't care if I win or lose. The only thing I want to do now is take down Alejandro. As long as he doesn't win, I'll be thrilled. Anyway, text me every day, and tell Bridgette, Leshawna and Geoff what I said." After all, what he did to them was just as bad.

When I went to the confessional, Alejandro was in there again. I heard every word he said. "DJ has Chris to thank for his departure. Not allowed on my team, and no merge on the horizon? Bye-bye. Nothing personal." I heard him start to laugh. Then, when he was done, he added "And without DJ around, it will be that much easier to get Elle's guard down. She may think she knows what she's doing, but once I'm finished with her, she won't have a clue what's going on."

I quickly ran from the confessional room, planning to make a confessional later. I didn't want Alejandro to know I'd heard his confessional.

DJ took the army plane home with Izzy, while the rest of us were stranded in Jamaica until we got the money to continue.

**So...yeah. Please review!**

**Also, this is for TD fans. I've got a new story up, a TDI/Simpsons crossover in this archive, starring my Simpsons OC, Stephanie, the eldest Simpson kid – three years older than Bart. She's been in a few crossovers before, along with her family, but I decided to write a TDI story about her and changed some rules so she could communicate with her family. Also, she and Gwen are very alike. Please take a look – it's called "Being On Reality TV", since all her stories start with "Being".**

**And also, I've put a poll on my profile. Again, it's based on a trio of characters I like. Please, vote?**


	40. Chapter 40: Not Trusted, Busted

**Now, let's see what's going to happen. Oh, and yes, I did use the more risque iTunes line for Sierra's part of the song. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132 (sort of, actually...but you'll have to wait and see!) and the guest reviewer.**

The Aftermath show did a Telethon to get us the money we needed to leave Jamaica. Bridgette even attached clips of the show to her text and sent me clips of Duncan sightings from fans, Izzy's new persona "Brainzilla" giving way to the real Izzy after another knock on the head, and Leshawna singing a song about Alejandro and dancing. Well, it was more about taking Alejandro down than anything – okay, so his name was never mentioned, but it was clear the aggression in the song was fully directed at him. At one point, there was a picture of him that appeared.

Geoff just gave me a rundown of the events via phone call, letting me know about the revenge of the animals on DJ (hadn't he suffered enough?) and some of the other things that happened, including slowly lowering the peanut gallery into a vat of sharks unless Izzy could defuse a bomb blindfolded (she hit it with a hammer).

Speaking of Alejandro, now that DJ was gone, he wouldn't leave me alone. I smiled and talked, but on the inside, I hated him with every fibre of my being.

"Are you all right, Elle?" he asked me one day. "I know you must be missing DJ, but..."

I nodded. "But I know he's happier home. He told me in his last text that there's no trace of his 'curse' now he's at home. It's just that most of my friends got kicked off this show so early, and I really miss them. Bridgette and Leshawna are two people I count as among my closest friends, and they're gone, too. My only true friend left here is Gwen, and I hardly see her, since she's on a different team. Even if I did hang out with her, I'd be stuck with Heather and Courtney. I can't stand them, they can't stand me."

Alejandro shot one of his charming smiles at me. "Well, would you allow me to be your friend?"

I smiled back, trying hard not to seem like I was faking it. "Why not?"

After the telethon, we were on our way to our next destination. Even though we'd won the last challenge, Chris said he needed First Class for a special guest, so all ten of us were in Economy class as we drew nearer to the destination.

Gwen, who had gotten sunburn on one hand (long story short, Cody had gotten Tyler to take a picture of her and him while she was asleep under an umbrella, and when he left, he accidentally moved the umbrella so her hand was exposed), was now dipping it into a mixture Courtney had made for her that she claimed would help. Sierra said she was updating Twitter, but she was using an old pizza box as a laptop, with a real mouse as a mouse. "..._Cody is still cute..." _she said out loud, pondering how many letters she had left. "What else can I say?"

"_Considering buying myself a life on Prezlist," _Noah said in an imitation of Sierra's voice, "_But having trouble deciding, because they're all such a major improvement." _Owen laughed, milk spraying out of his nose and soaking the poor guy.

"Dude, gross!" Noah said in his normal voice.

"Oh, did I get some of my nose milkshake on you? Sorry." Owen apologized. "It's the only thing that really cools down a handful of Jamaican peppers." He lobbed some more of his Jamaican peppers into his mouth and gasped. "Hot! Hot! Hot! Milk!" He poured it down his throat.

Noah mimicked Sierra again. "_Must learn how to make nose shakes like Owen. That'll impress Cody," _Owen and I burst out laughing. This time, the peppers shot out of Owen's nose, bouncing around the walls and one even hitting poor Tyler in the face. This time, Noah started to laugh.

The boys began a conversation about nose shakes and peppers and when it turned out Owen was out of milk, Noah even asked Courtney if she had any more of the mixture Gwen was dipping her hand into (although I wouldn't put that stuff in my mouth – half of it was bird faeces as Heather had so gracefully pointed out).

During this whole time, Alejandro had been stretched out on the bench, eyes closed. At this, he opened his eyes, frowning. "Excuse me, gentlemen." he said. "I have to be...anywhere but here." He paused at the door and smiled at me. "Elle, would you like to-"

I cut him off. "Thanks, but I think I should stay. Someone should keep these knuckleheads under control." I nudged Noah and Owen fondly. Although I didn't spend so much time around them, I liked them both. Noah was pretty funny, when he wasn't being lazy and losing challenges (which was something he hadn't done this season, so he was just funny), and Owen was just as cheerful and optimistic as always.

As it was, it was just the three of us and Tyler that did the next challenge. Alejandro disappeared, and Chris didn't even seem to care. We landed in London, England, and we were told that we were heading to the Tower Of London, where we would hunt for clues to find Jack The Ripper – before he found us. Oh, and he was the reason we were down a man.

"The Ripper got Al?" Owen exclaimed. "Not Al!"

"Do you think he's okay?" Heather said to her team in a panicked tone. She immediately caught the expressions on Gwen and Courtney's faces and said quickly "Because, wow, big advantage for us, yay!"

It turned out we were at a disadvantage anyway. Gwen talked about how she'd done a speech on the Ripper in sixth grade, and Courtney mentioned her sixth grade speech was on the Tower of London. In between part of their conversation, Heather asked again "Should we look for Alejandro?" She covered it up again, but I immediately understood. Heather, strong, cold-hearted Heather, who'd specifically told Alejandro to back off in New York and stole a bunch of gold chains off him in Jamaica, had a crush. It made sense, sort of – they had their similarities. But I knew that Heather would never admit to it.

Finally, we got to the Tower. The first thing we had to do was find our clue by...stripping a guard. No, seriously. Our clue was hidden somewhere in his uniform. "And while you're at it..." added Chris.

_Ding-ding! _All of us groaned, even Courtney, who usually loved to sing.

"_It's creepy how they stand there, and don't even blink!" _sang Owen, standing beside one of the guards. "_I don't wanna see his bum, all naked and pink!"_

Noah nudged our guard. "_Hey buddy, can we bribe you to strip yourself down?"_

"_Yum-Yum Happy Go Time Fish?" _Owen offered.

"_Don't kill him, you clown!" _Noah and I said quickly.

Team Amazon were staring at their guard. "_No way, I can't strip him," _Courtney sang, "_Duncan will freak!"_

"_And I'm allergic to uniforms..." _added Heather.

"Okay, that's just weak." Gwen informed her.

Sierra pulled Cody into a hug, singing "_I can only strip Cody, and he can only strip me!"_

"_Okay, so then, I have to do it?" _said Gwen. "_Um, hello, injury!" _She held up her sunburned hand. "Ow!"

"_If we're gonna find that clue," _Courtney sang.

"_There's only one thing to do!" _Heather added in.

"_Force someone to strip him down!" _Sierra clarified.

"_And sorry, Gwen, that's you!" _all three girls sang together.

Meanwhile, Noah, Owen and I kept tying at rock, paper, scissors. "_If we're gonna find that clue," _Noah sang,

"_There's only one thing to do..." _Owen continued.

"_Force someone to strip him down!" _I caroled, and we all pointed at our other team member.

"_And Tyler, dude, that's you!"_

While we finished up the song, Gwen tricked Sierra into stripping their guard, while Tyler reluctantly stripped ours.

Ours took ages to find with Owen goofing off. We found that it was in the guard's hat. The clue led us up to a room with a torture rack. We had to stretch someone to find the next clue.

By this time, Noah was really the one acting as leader, and for the first time, I realized how truly smart he was. He'd worked out the first clue, and was really the most competent person compared to goofy Owen and klutzy Tyler (me, I don't know...I guess he's a little more intelligent). With Alejandro around, Noah usually faded into the background due to being more blasé about the challenges, but now that he was leading us, I liked him even more.

Tyler volunteered to be the one stretched. "Quick," said Noah, "Tie him down before Alejandro shows up and makes me do it just because I'm shorter."

Owen and I obeyed. "Why don't you like Al?" Owen asked. "He's great."

"I don't trust the guy." Noah answered. "He's like an eel, dipped in grease, swimming in motor oil. Slippery. Think about it. He's like Heather, only with social skills."

I grinned. "Noah, you are officially my new favourite person." I said. "Honestly, I thought I was the only one who noticed! I lost my closest friends and my boyfriend to his tactics in the competition."

Noah nodded, placing his hands on the rack wheel. "I saw you watching him closely since you joined our team. But you and I aren't the only ones – Heather hasn't exactly been subtle about it."

Tyler began screaming. "Oh, stop! It's too much! Stop!"

"You do realize we haven't started yet, right?" Noah asked.

Tyler looked around and relaxed. "My bad." He only whimpered as we stretched, and we soon had the clue.

As our team ran towards the next location, Owen spoke up. "Hey, guys, know what's hilarious?"

"We forgot Tyler!" Noah suddenly exclaimed.

"How is that hilarious?" At that moment, we heard a scream. Tyler's scream. By the time we got back to the rack, he'd gone.

We went to the banquet hall to find the next clue. "Okay," I said, "Why don't I stand guard and you find the next clue? We've lost two teammates already – we do not need to lose the challenge because all three of us got caught by the Ripper."

The boys agreed, but maybe I should've stuck with the safety in numbers rule. I was standing there, when something in the shadows moved. Suddenly, someone was standing behind me, and a bag was shoved over my head.

"Noah! Owen!" I yelled, but I knew the bag would muffle my screams.

I was dumped out of the bag a few minutes later, and to my relief, I found myself in the plane. Five more people were standing there.

Sierra was there, still clinging onto Cody. I was also relieved to find Tyler there, absolutely fine. Heather was also there, filing her nails casually. And Alejandro was glaring at me.

"Let me guess...the Ripper got to you and brought you here?" I asked. They all nodded.

At that moment, I realized that to the side, there were two screens, one following Owen and Noah, the other following Courtney and Gwen.

"You guys were watching what was going on?" I asked. Again, a nod. I soon realized why Alejandro was glaring at me. He'd obviously heard every word Noah and I had said.

I debated what to do about it...back up, or own up? Well, the damage was obviously done, so I decided owning up was the only option. With maybe a little bit of sugarcoating...but maybe I'd do it later, once the challenge was over.

Both teams were back, each with a sack holding a person. As soon as they got their, Alejandro turned his accusing green eyes on Noah, too.

"You were watching everything?" Noah said worriedly. "Wow, that's awkward." He tried to back out of what he'd said, claiming that "an eel dipped in grease" was a compliment in his neighbourhood.

"But hey," he said, "We caught the Ripper type guy!" He pulled the bag, and we all gasped at the face.

"Old Man Jenkins?"

But it was a mask. We gasped at the pale green malnourished face that greeted us. "Ezekiel?" My homeschooled friend didn't seem like the old Zeke. He was not just pale green, he seemed unable to talk, only to growl.

"Found him in the cargo hold." Chef explained.

"I was going to let him back in the game if he could avoid capture." Chris clarified. So he was tossed out of the plane again.

"So who did Courtney and Gwen catch?" Heather asked.

"Well, Chris wanted a criminal." Gwen said. "So...okay, we didn't catch the right one, but..." She pulled the sack off the man.

We all gasped again. "Duncan?"

Sure enough, the punk stood there."You brought me back here." he scowled. "Where's the stupid exit again?"

But Chris wasn't letting him skip out on the game again. He not only made Duncan come back in the game, but declared Team Amazon the winners and stuck Duncan on our team.

"But someone else is gonna have to go!" Oh yeah, and even Duncan got to vote.

"Uh-oh..." murmured Noah, Owen and I.

I pulled Noah aside before elimination. "Listen, it looks like our cover is blown. We've got to vote off Alejandro. It's him or us."

"And I know I'll be first." Noah added. "He has a better idea on how to manipulate you than he does me, I can tell. And he thinks you're more useful."  
I frowned. "Me? But you're the better player."

"More useful to him, not the team." Noah clarified. "The only person on this whole plane that he's not planning to use until they're no longer helpful is Heather."

That threw me off. "Wait a minute – why Heather? I mean, I know she's impossible to manipulate, but why only her?"

"He's into her." Noah answered. "Totally. It's obvious, when you think about it."

I shrugged. "Whatever. Point is, we have to vote him off, and convince Owen to do the same. He'll listen to you."

It didn't go so well. Owen had already voted by the time we caught up with him.

Chris read the votes. "And with three votes against him, Noah! It's time to say tally-ho, pip pip, cheerio, toodle-oo..."  
"All right, if I jump, will you stop?" demanded Noah.

"Goodbye, buddy." Owen said emotionally. "I'll win for you!"

"Whatev." Noah answered. "Just beware of eels." Alejandro smirked, and Noah jumped.

I decided to talk to Alejandro that night, so I cornered him. "I admit it." I said calmly. "I do know what you did to Bridgette. And Leshawna. And DJ. I'm sure you know why I haven't said anything."

Alejandro didn't glare at me again, just neutral. "How did you find out anything?" he asked, sounding interested as well as curious.

"Simple." I said. "I asked Bridgette what happened. I was all set to ditch her as a friend when she admitted to cheating on Geoff, but once I got the whole story out of her, I knew it wasn't all her fault. I do not have a problem with what you did to Leshawna, not really, since you didn't actually hurt her apart from getting her kicked off, but do you know how much you hurt Bridgette? She nearly got frostbite, and you hurt my brother too by doing that to her!" I took a breath. "And I know you were the one that broke the bobsledding course so DJ lost. Do you know what you did, bringing his hopes up and then sending them back down again?" I finally finished.

Alejandro's green eyes were steely. "Well done, Elle, you think you've got me figured out." he said. His tone was even and quiet, but I could hear the menace in it. Then he just walked away, and I was left with a sinking feeling that maybe I shouldn't have said anything.

**Well done, Elle, you just owned up to it in the worst way possible. Please review!**


	41. Chapter 41: What The Hell, Gwuncan?

**Greece. Nice! Thanks for reviewing to Elizabeth Life Stone, Ali6132 and the guest reviewer.**

The next day, Tyler was all wide-eyed with his eyes flickering around. They seemed to keep going back to Duncan, who was asleep.

"Something wrong, Tyler?" Alejandro asked him. "If you tell me, maybe I can help."

Tyler paused. Finally, he whispered "I saw something."

He was interrupted by Duncan very loudly making a big deal of waking up. "Oh wow, that was a deep sleep." he remarked. "Sleep of the dead. You know what I mean, Tyler? Dead."

Tyler went silent and I raised my eyebrows at Duncan. Whatever he'd done, I was going to get it out of Tyler somehow.  
Okay, as it happened, I didn't need to get it out of Tyler – Alejandro did it first, but more on that later.

Our flight was slightly delayed, because some intern led Chris to believe the Olympics challenge he'd planned for would fit with Rome. Chef was redirected to head to Athens.

While we were in the common area, I noticed Duncan and Gwen looking at each other, and Courtney glaring at Gwen momentarily. I wondered if that had anything to do with whatever Tyler was worried about.

The challenges were all meant to be one-on-one to make things fair, since we were down a person, and according to Chris, Team Amazon were all girls (making Cody sigh). The winners of each challenge would get a gold medal. Winning team were the ones with the most medals.

For the first challenge, there was a scavenger hunt, trying to find a medal attached to a boar (a bear with tusks attached), and Duncan and Gwen volunteered for the teams. Things got awkward again, and I looked at Tyler again. He looked worried, just as usual. Worse for Duncan, he had to sing everything he said until we left Greece, or Chef would hit him with a towel.

The rest of us headed off to the one-on-one fighting challenge with no rules.

"As the strongest member of our team, I volunteer." Courtney said.

"I'm pretty sure I'm the strongest." Cody objected, flexing.

Courtney chuckled at the idea that Cody was stronger than her, making Sierra scowl. "As I was saying..."

"That's it!" Sierra interrupted furiously. "I volunteer to fight Courtney!"

Tyler and Owen went in for our team. Alejandro would've gone, but he offered Tyler his position as a favour – as long as he returned the favour later on.

I smiled at Alejandro tentatively. "You're going to make Tyler tell what he knows about Duncan, right?" I said nervously. "Because if you are, I should probably let you know, it's definitely something to do with Gwen's crush on Duncan. I know she has one – did you see the way she looked at him this morning?"

I wasn't sure if my helpfulness was working. The plan was to be as nice and helpful as possible to Alejandro in the hopes that it would convince him not to vote me off. I mean, the thing was, he smiled at me and treated me like he usually did, but I knew he was a good actor.

We could've lost the challenge, since Tyler wouldn't hit Courtney because "I don't wanna hurt a girl" and after Cody was sent flying, Sierra nearly strangled Owen with her legs. The reason we won was because Courtney called Cody a "pipsqueak" and Sierra immediately flew at her.

"Respect Cody!" shrieked Sierra.

"Same team!" Courtney gasped back. Cody tried to stop them, but Courtney slapped him away from them and Sierra got even more violent.

Soon, both of them were on the ground and Owen got two medals, while Duncan and Gwen sang the episode's musical number.

"He's got such a great voice." Courtney gushed to Sierra. "I can't make out the lyrics. Speak up!" Chris shushed her, frowning.

The only line I actually heard was Gwen's ending line as she won the challenge. "_Thanks, Mr Boar-Bear, I guess I win this game!"_

After that, Gwen ran up with her medal, having won the scavenger hunt. "Nice one, Gwen." Courtney smiled. "Is Duncan okay? How long were you guys alone together?"

Duncan didn't join her, but Chris said Chef would take care of him.

The next challenge was a hurdles race – Alejandro vs Heather.

"Sorry, but I'm fast and flexible." Heather said smugly. In reply, Alejandro tied his hair into a ponytail with his feet. No, seriously.

I thought for sure we'd win. Right from the start, Alejandro was a little bit quicker than Heather.

"Don't worry!" he called to her. "You can borrow my medal if you ever need to look like a winner!"

"Gold! Gold! Gold!" chanted Owen. Alejandro even walked on his hands for a couple of hurdles and still jumped over them. It was when he began running backwards that it happened. "Relax, my friends, victory is at hand-" He crashed into the last hurdle, while Heather jumped over it and got to the finish line first.

I had to go into the tiebreaker, and I was playing vs Cody. I had to wear what seemed like a bikini, while Cody had to wear what Chris called "authentic Spartan battle costumes. With it, we would wear wings that would help us fly up to the top of a crane, where a medal dangled. Whoever got the medal first won First Class for their team.

"He's like an angel!" Sierra sighed over Cody.

"Those costumes are not authe-" Alejandro began, but Sierra stopped him.

"Ssh! No one cares!"

That was when Alejandro did it. He knew that it was going to be a close one, and that Team Amazon should have a distraction. He looked at Tyler. "Time to pay back that favour. Please tell Courtney what you know about Duncan and Gwen."

Courtney gasped.

"Tyler, don't say it in front of everyone!" I pleaded.

"Now." Alejandro ordered.

"Don't!" I said quickly.

"On your marks-" Chris began.

Tyler finally blurted out six words that were probably the worst six words Courtney had ever heard. "I saw Duncan and Gwen kiss!" He gave a sigh of relief.

"WHAT?" Courtney shrieked.

"Oh, that's a load off." Tyler sighed.

"He said he saw-" Alejandro began, just as Courtney began to snarl at Gwen.

"Get set..." called out Chris.

I was more focused on Courtney, Sierra holding her back as she screamed at Gwen. "HOW COULD YOU?! I thought we were friend...ish! I hate you, I HATE YOU!"

"Go!" called out Chris.

I was still frozen in shock. So was Cody. "Duncan? _Duncan?_" he said in disbelief.

"You called?" Duncan, looking a bit beaten up, but otherwise fine, reappeared. He laughed at Cody's appearance. "Nice bikini!" Cody scowled, and then his fist flew up and hit Duncan in the face.

"Fly, Cody, fly!" Sierra called.

"Cody, stay where you are!" Courtney yelled.

"But we'll lose!" Sierra protested. Her eyes followed Courtney's to Gwen, and she realized what it meant. "Oh. Cody, stay where you are!"

I felt bad for Gwen, but I had to save my own skin, too, so I flew. But I lost – Cody cared too much about Gwen to take Courtney's side, the way Heather and Sierra did.

I knew for a fact that the elimination was a no-brainer. If I wanted any chance at staying in the game, I'd have to vote off Duncan. Tyler and Owen would vote with me too, I was sure. I didn't know who Duncan would vote for, but I was sure that Alejandro was going to try to get me kicked off next.

I was probably the only person who saw Gwen watching from behind a totem pole. I sent her an apologetic look, seeing the concern on her face.

Chris listed the reasons why we were here. "Elle lost the tiebreaker, which is why you're all here. Alejandro blew it in the hurdles, which forced the tiebreaker, which is why you're all here. Plus, he knocked himself out trying to outman a girl. All this, while his hair was in a ponytail."

"What does my hair have to-" Alejandro began.

"Tyler got TKOed by a girl. Funny, but not helpful." Chris continued. "And Duncan lost his first challenge back, and managed to ruffle a lot of melted feathers. Plus, if all the girls get eliminated, we have no idea who he'll try to kiss next."

Duncan rolled his eyes.

"Your choice is pretty clear." Chris said. "But today, the final choice is mine. And the Drop of Shame will be taken by...the person with the second most amount of votes! As if I'm going to send Duncan home when the fun's just getting started!"

We all glanced at each other. I looked at Alejandro, who glanced towards Duncan and then smirked.

"Therefore..." Chris said. "Elle. Sorry, you're out."

I smiled bravely and strapped on the parachute, making sure not to stand too close to the door so I could finish speaking before Chris shoved me out.

I scowled. "I have a fair idea of who voted for me. Tyler, Owen, I'll miss you guys. Wish I could say the same for Duncan and Alejandro, but...I'd be lying." My eyes met Alejandro's green orbs." Let it be known that at least one girl knows that you're a sneaky, remorseless, overconfident, too-charming-" Chris pushed me so powerfully at that moment so that I stumbled off the plane before I could finish. Damn him!

**So Elle's gone! But she'll be back. I have plans for her. Please review!**


	42. Chapter 42: Take A Chance

**Let's get to the Aftermath studio! Thanks to Elizabeth Agosta, Td4ever, Ali6132, Alex and the guest reviewers. Everyone seems to have the same idea of what Elle will do next..**

I soon reached the Aftermath studio after I got a plane back to Canada. Geoff greeted me with a hug. "Hey, sis. Sorry you got booted, but I'm glad you chewed out that jerk."

I nodded. "I despise that guy."

Bridgette and Leshawna also congratulated me on everything I'd said to Alejandro, being victims of him themselves. DJ didn't say anything about it, which I didn't mind. The time we spent together mostly consisted of being as close as we possibly could.

We had to watch the next three episodes, taking place in Area 51 (Tyler was eliminated), Australia (Gwen lost a tiebreaker when she and Courtney got an equal amount of votes and left), and Sweden (no one got voted off).

While I felt some sympathy for Gwen, my sympathy grew for Courtney. No one deserved to be cheated on the way Duncan had done to her. It was painful to see Courtney kicking him in the crotch one last time and trying her best to lose challenges so she could eliminate Gwen.

It got worse. After Team Amazon won the challenge in Area 51, the boys discussed how to deplete the other team's strength. It was Duncan who suggested that Alejandro use his seductive tactics on Courtney, not only to get her eliminated, but to make Heather jealous. And Courtney was soon completely helpless to resist him. I never liked Courtney, but I wouldn't wish Alejandro on even my worst enemy (Heather, but Courtney's pretty close to second). In Sweden, it only got worse. I also noticed Duncan trying to get himself and Owen working together against Alejandro – that was good.

All too soon, I was waiting in the green room with Noah, Tyler and Gwen for my introduction to the Aftermath. But trust me, things, only got worse. Blaineley was supposed to be in Siberia, with a superfan of hers. For some reason, Bridgette was there instead.

Blaineley explained it to Geoff. "All I did was take Bridgette to the airport to shoot a special report, slipped my passport and ticket into her purse, and helped her on the plane right before takeoff!"

Bridgette was on webcam for a moment. Geoff managed to talk to her, just for a moment. "You okay, Bridgey-bear?"

"Bear?" Bridgette looked around. "Is the bear back? We've already lost one intern!" There was an avalanche at that moment.

"Bridge!" cried Geoff. "Bridge, Bridge, Bridge, Bridge!"

"Snap out of it!" Blaineley slapped him. "I've got a show to host!" I couldn't believe she was so heartless. It was bad enough to send Bridgette to Siberia in her place, but she didn't even care that she might be dead.

"You're a monster!" exclaimed Geoff.

"Meh, been called worse." Blaineley said calmly.

Geoff actually left the stage for a while, while Blaineley hosted, but she wasn't getting much enthusiasm. She introduced all of us eliminated. "He's brilliant, witty and would be the one to watch in the competition – if he weren't here! Noah!"

I waited in the wings behind Noah.

"Next up," Blaineley said, "She's fiercely loyal and ruthless to those she despises, even trying to kick off her strongest teammate for her friends – welcome Elle!"

I was pleased to hear some cheers as I came out.

"Next, he's the guy who flirted with danger – aka Courtney – even though he's got a memory-challenged girlfriend back home – it's Tyler!"

Tyler swung in on a rope, but of course, fell off the stage. "Omigosh, Tyler!" Lindsay cried.

I gave the thumbs up to Leshawna, who'd won a bet she and Harold made against Trent about whether Lindsay would remember Tyler's name.

"And our final loser earned two fun new nicknames this season," Blaineley continued, "The boyfriend kisser, and the new Heather. Hello, Gwen!"

Next, we had That's Gonna Leave A Mark up, which did have some good moments, but nothing I laughed at.

Next, Blaineley told us about the surprise. Six of us would get a chance to participate in a challenge which would lead to one of us getting back into the game.

We each got a can of peanuts – well, most cans were full of peanuts. Six cans held something else that gave us another chance.

Leshawna got one of the special cans first. "A Chris-in-the-box?" she exclaimed when a golden Chris head on a spring popped out. "That's an insult to boxes!"

I opened mine, and gave a squeal when a Chris head sprung out of mine too. I high-fived Leshawna.

Lindsay, Beth, Tyler (in a wheelchair by now) and Noah also got a chance. Personally, I wanted to get back in the game just so I could take down Alejandro, but if it wasn't me, I hoped it would be Beth. She may have won the million last season, but she didn't even get a chance this season. Or Leshawna – she'd take down Alejandro for me, no problem!

Geoff came back as we got Bridgette back on webcam.

"So Bridgette," said Blaineley, "Last time you were this cold, you made out with a pole, and I-" She seemed to love bringing up the pole kissing incident.

"Bridge, talk to me!" cried Geoff.

"S-superfan's mad I'm not Blaineley!" Bridgette managed through her chattering teeth, dodging a seal thrown at her. "Will you stop throwing things at my head?" she yelled at the offscreen thrower.

"What does he want?" Geoff asked.

"Is he hot?" Blaineley asked eagerly. "Like, pole hot?" I scowled at her.

"That's not important right now!" Geoff snapped at her. "Is he? No, stay on point! There's gotta be a way to get Bridge back!"

"Boyfriend and Drama Brothers sing traditional Russian song of Blaineley!" ordered Blainley's fan offscreen to Bridgette.

"Oh, tell my superfan I think he's super fantastic!" Blaineley squealed. I glared at her.

"Are you with me?" Geoff asked the three former members of the Drama Brothers. Trent, Justin and Harold nodded. Geoff, noticing the way I was glaring at Blaineley, looked at me. "Elle?" His eyes were still full of anger at Blaineley and anxiety for Bridgette, but I saw a sparkle that told me exactly how to join in.

"Sure!" I jumped up.

"This ought to be a fate-sealer." Blaineley smirked. I shot her another glare. How could anyone be as awful as her? At least most of the worst people I knew did things like that for a better reason! At least we could start getting revenge now, via the song.

Trent, Justin and Harold began playing. Geoff began the song (shirtless). "_Here's an open letter to a treasure of a girl!"_

"That's me!" added Blaineley.

"_Whose behaviour on this show always makes me hurl!" _I joined in.

Blaineley frowned. "What?"

"_She's a nasty fake blonde schemer, who calls herself your host!" _Geoff sang. "_Without the help of her entourage, her job would be toast!"_

"_Hey!" _they chorused.

"Hey!" Blaineley returned, then glared at us. "Hey!"

"_She'll tell you that she loves your shirt, but it's something she can't stand!" _Geoff sang, standing with DJ.

"_She's just so full of you-know-what, she has to double flush the can!" _I sang, standing near Katie and Sadie, cringing at the awful line.

"I eat a lot of fibre!" Blaineley protested.

"_She bought two pairs the same jeans," _I sang, _"One size four and one size eight..."_

"_So when she wears the bigger ones, you'll ask if she's lost weight!" _Geoff added, putting on a pair behind a screen, which promptly slipped down. He continued the song completely with the pants around his ankles, only in his boxers, but the fun of doing this song just overpowered how embarrassed I probably should have been. Keep in mind I was talking about my brother.

"_She's not the gal you think she is, so let me tell you plainly," _we sang together. "_There's thick black hair between her toes, and her real name isn't Blaineley!"_

"_She's a phony scheming weasel-nose, and her real name isn't Blaineley!" _I sang.

"_She steals and lies and she's evil, bros," _Geoff continued, "_And her real name isn't Blaineley..." _The blonde was really looking worried now. We looked at each other and nodded.

"_It's MILDRED!" _Geoff and I yelled out together.

It was fun, yes. But it also meant we lost contact when a Siberian bear rose up and broke the camera.

"Great choice for a Blaineley superfan, Einstein." Blaineley rolled her eyes.

"Shut up." I snapped. "You're just mad because we told everyone who you really are."

"If that's a Siberian brown bear out there, Bridgette's doomed." Harold stated matter-of-factly.

"My girl is doomed, thanks to you!" Geoff scowled at Blaineley.

"You two sang it, not me! And whoever told them about the hair between my toes is going down!"

Geoff's voice went dangerously quiet. "You're gonna pay for this. The gloves are off. Like, _way _off!"

I stepped up beside him. "The only person going down is you."

"Whoa, take things seriously much?" Blaineley said coolly. "She'll be fine! Ish."

It was halftime, but after that, it was time for our second chance challenge. Blaineley showed us a board game with six lines of squares. Each square on each line showed a contestant still in the game, or somewhere they'd been, from Greece to Sweden.

Actually, Noah tried to get out of the game, but it was in his contract. I nudged him. "Noah, don't be such a downer! Besides, eel alert! If you're back in the game, you've gotta try and take him down!"

Noah shrugged. He obviously didn't care enough to get in the game for just that.

We would roll the dice, and do a little challenge relating to the country or contestant we landed on, unless the square happened to be booby-trapped, of course. The person who got to the end first would get a skill-testing question from an English guard. If they got it right, they were in the game!

However, Geoff had another bit of revenge for Blaineley. I grinned when he mentioned the greenroom cam had been on all the time. Now everyone was going to see what Blaineley had been up to 24-7. Well, the worst parts, anyway.

Let me say, she was disgusting. You should've seen the muck she didn't mind having on her pizza (seriously, she dropped a slice and when she picked it up, it was covered in horrors), the length of her toenails, the weight she usually was when she didn't constantly suck in her breath or something. After that, we were reminded that if the show ran late, she didn't get paid, so we decided to try to make the show run late.

But we had to get the game started. Lindsay rolled first. "Come on, lucky number seven!" As usual, sharp as a marshmallow. She rolled four and got the Owen square.

The Owen challenge was to eat several Jamaican peppers, drink milk, and not make a nose shake while watching some painful TD wipeouts. As it was, they were all Tyler wipeouts, and she stayed in the game. Tyler was up next.

Lindsay swallowed. "I never laugh at boyfriends! You can do it, Tyler!"

Tyler rolled five, getting a booby-trapped square. Poor guy. At least Trent, who'd been helping Tyler by moving the wheelchair, could go back to the peanut gallery, that is, if he didn't mind having to sit right next to his ex-girlfriend.

"Impressive nursing." Gwen teased him as he sat down. "Remind me not to get sick around you." Trent laughed.

Noah got Area 51, and basically had to dodge a bunch of lasers without leaving the square. For the most part, he was pretty good, but he lost one and was out of the game. It was my turn to roll, and I got a one. I sighed and stepped onto the first square, which happened to be the Alejandro square. I immediately resigned myself to losing. If if was something Mr Perfect-at-challenges was good at, it was bound to be impossible for me.

Actually, I didn't expect to, but I did get through the challenge. All I had to do was charm a cute but vicious...no, not a panda, we didn't have one. We did, however, have a bear, which wasn't cute, but hey, it was vicious.

I smiled up at it., trying not to show my fear, trying to copy the way Alejandro had charmed the panda in Japan. "Well, hi there. You're so powerful and strong, aren't you?" The bear gave me a puzzled look.

"You look great today." I continued. "Have you been losing weight?" The bear began to smile, and then...oh, this is adorable. It very gently put its arms around me and hugged me, just for a moment. I was still in!

Leshawna got kicked off next, sadly. She rolled a three and got the Australia square. She was meant to box with a kangaroo, but it got her out with one punch. Harold tried to fight for her honour, but didn't last long either.

Finally, Beth rolled a six and got the Heather square. "Your challenge is a haiku!" Blaineley told her. "Whatever that is."

There was a pause, until Geoff told her "It's a three-line Japanese poem with seventeen syllables."

"Stop feeding him lines!" Blaineley yelled at the producers. Well, seriously. He didn't know what a haiku was – remember when Bridgette, Gwen and I were trying to find out who wrote that love haiku – the one that turned out to be by Harold to Leshawna?

Beth's haiku had to highlight something good about Heather.

"But she has no positive attributes!" Beth protested. "It's impossible!"

As if that wasn't enough, Blaineley pressured the poor girl. "Um...uh..." Beth began, "_Heather has ten toes-"_

"True, but not very positive." Blaineley snapped.

"Um..._webbed feet for summer swimming..." _Beth finally thought of something. "_She's fast in water!"_

So now it was just Lindsay, Beth and I. Lindsay got the Sweden square next, and funnily enough, did the challenge before Geoff told her what to do – balance three Swedish meatballs on her nose. Finally, she let them go. "Sorry, I totally wasn't listening. What's my challenge?"

"It's already over." Geoff told her.

I rolled a six, this time, and got the Duncan square. My challenge was basically to just unpick a knot with my hands tied together, which wasn't actually as hard as it sounded. I think it was a callback to last season, when the finalists were tied up together and once Duncan untied Beth, she untied him.

Beth got another six. All she had to do was chase an intern dressed as the Ripper and put him in a sack before the English guard asked her the question.

While we waited, we managed to get Bridgette back on webcam. She was with the Siberian bear, bandaging his paw.

"I have to stay until Bruno's better!' Bridgette said. The bear smiled.

"But Bridge, you can't stay!" Geoff protested. "What about the show? What about me? You can't leave me with this...thing!" He pointed at Blaineley, but at that moment, the webcam faded out.

"Geoff, I'll host until she comes back." I offered. "I know it doesn't help, but it looks like she's okay."

Beth managed to get her Ripper tied up in a sack and got her question.

Blaineley read it herself. "What's the name of Duncan's punk band?"

I remembered hearing it, because it was said in the punk club where Courtney and Gwen found Duncan...long story short, they thought one of the clues was sending them to Whitechapel, and it was actually the double-decker bus we took to the Tower.

"Come on, Beth, it's easy!" Blaineley said.

"Stop pressuring me! I'm thinking! Can I get a hint?"

"Come on, Beth, just say it's Der Schnitzel Kickers!"

"Can I guess Der Schitzel Kickers?" I asked. "You know, since Beth hasn't gotten it and I'm still in?"

But at that moment, Blaineley answered the question herself.

Geoff got the biggest grin on his face I'd seen since he realized Bridgette was gone. "Congratulations, Blaineley...and Elle, you too! First to answer correctly gets a one-way ticket to the Total Drama plane, 'member?"

"Me?" Blaineley exclaimed. "But Elle was the loser who answered it!"

"No matter!" Geoff said. "Both of you win, because you answered at the same time!"

"YES!" I cheered.

As for Blaineley...she was furious, but we both had to go. I couldn't help but grin in victory as we sat in the plane to Niagara Falls.

**And that's where we'll pick up next time. That was a fun chapter to write. I thought I had to get Elle back in the game, so this was a good way to put her back in. Please review!**


	43. Chapter 43: Just Married Break-Up

**Time to get into the game again! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone and Td4ever (I'm working on another story right now which will change the elimination order – right now the prequel to it is being uploaded, and it's called "Please Bail Out Bailey").**

Blaineley and I were sent to the casino theatre near Niagara Falls, and we could hear Chris introducing us.

"She's someone we definitely wanted back – sweet, smart and in it to win it – welcome back Elle!"

I ran back in. "Hi, guys!" I smiled at nearly everyone, even Heather and Courtney, and I even hugged Owen, the only one of my former teammates that I both respected and liked. There was only one of the seven contestants I didn't even look at.

"And our other contestant is 200 pounds of sassy in a 90 pound package, and she's wearing 12 pounds of mascara – it's Blaineley!"

"_Que_?" Alejandro asked.

"What?" asked Courtney, basically repeating Alejandro's Spanish exclamation in English.

"Who?" Heather questioned.

Blaineley actually began the episode's song, and I knew that she was singing it to me in a way – redeeming herself after the lyrics Geoff and I sang about her.

"_Blaine-Blaine-Blaine-Blaine-Blainerific is my name, dishing dirt is my game, invading your TV with my Blainelicious frame..."_

"_B-Blainerific!" _Owen put in. "_S-s-so terrific!_"

"_I'm f-f-famous, famous!" _Blaineley recited.

Courtney scowled. "_This is so against the rules, does Chris think we're a bunch of fools?"_

"_Rules, this ain't no Sunday School," _Chris replied, "_Ms Thang up there's a ratings jewel!"_

"_B-Blainerific!" _Owen said again.

"_M-m-make me si-ick!" _Heather said.

"_I'm f-f-famous, famous!" _Blaineley repeated. "_Get me a half-fat, no foam latte, steamed to a hundred two heat..._I'm quite specific." she added.

"_She's blainerific!" _Owen said.

"_So, so horrific." _Duncan commented.

"_I'm f-f-famous-" _Blaineley began, but was interrupted by Cody wondering who she was. "Who am I? Who am I? Who are you?" she demanded. "I'm the host of the Puppy Bachelorette, I was nominated for a Gemmie Award, I interviewed you for Celebrity Manhunt!"

The music started up again. "_It's a fact and scientific that I'm still blainerific!"_

I chanted the words along with Heather and Courtney. "_She's not so famous, turns out she's not so famous!"_

Blaineley stopped, and sighed. "Whatevers. So which of these lame teams am I on, anyway?"

"You're on your own." Chris told her. "Because as of right now, there are no more teams!"

Most of Team Amazon cheered, while Alejandro told his teammates that he hoped their friendship would continue.

"Liar." I muttered under my breath.

It was time to start the challenge. Chef brought out a huge fruit machine, that the boys were put into.

"Since we are in the honeymoon capital of the world," Chris said, "I thought it'd be cool to drop some arranged marriages on you!" Basically, each girl would pull the lever of the machine to win a "husband" to work with during the challenge. Or a bear. That was the fifth option.

Sierra pulled first, calling "Mama needs a new pair of Cody!"

But it wasn't Sierra's lucky day, it seemed. When the faces on the fruit machine showed Alejandro instead, Sierra grabbed Chris, shaking him, screaming "This isn't happening. This isn't happening! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING!"

"I better take him." Heather volunteered. "She won't stop unless somebody does."

"Why do you get to take him?" Blaineley objected.

"No kidding, what's up with that?" added Courtney.

"Yep, Heather, good enough for me." Sierra said cheerfully. But Courtney took one look at Alejandro and Heather, and scowled.

Much as I hated Courtney, I put a hand on her shoulder. "Court, he's not worth it." I said softly. "I know he's been sweet to you recently, but he's only doing it for your vote. Duncan knows – in fact, he was the one that told him to do it."

Courtney glared at me. "How would you know anything about it? It's not true, anyway. He's had eyes for no one but me up until Heather stole him just now!"

I rolled my eyes, as Blaineley went up and pulled the lever. She got Owen.

"Well, I could do worse." she sighed. "Marrying the audience favourite could be a positive boost for my image."

Courtney took her turn, and she got the bear. While it chased her around like crazy, I pulled the lever...and got Duncan!

However, things didn't work out with the bear. "Courtney and the bear are in splitsville already?" Chris said. "Well, it looks like we don't have enough guys to go around, so Courtney, you and Elle will have to share a husband."

"Oh, come on!" Courtney yelled.

I scowled. "Make her share with Sierra instead, once she's pulled! Or Blaineley or Heather – I don't care! She doesn't want to be on our team, and I'm sure neither of us want her on it, either!" As I kept saying, I wasn't crazy about Duncan, but Courtney was much worse.

"Exactly why you guys are working together!" Chris laughed. "The ratings will shoot up!"

Sierra, of course, got Cody.

Next, Chris blindfolded all of us girls, and made the guys direct us through traps to get to wedding dresses. Duncan took my directions pretty seriously, and navigated me correctly so that I got my dress just after Heather, but he directed Courtney wrongly a few times just to see her get covered in mud. She didn't believe any more of his directions after that, so she didn't get her dress until Alejandro decided to give her directions.

Us girls all got dressed, and soon we were all standing at a platform next to a tightrope suspended over Niagara Falls. We basically had to walk across from the American side to the Canadian side, where Chef would ask us questions. To get through Customs, we'd answer the questions. The couple that got through first won. Well, okay, I didn't have to walk. The boys had to carry the girls.

Since Heather got her dress first, she and Alejandro took off first, since they had a headstart. Courtney scowled even harder when Alejandro, taking the marriage part very seriously for the moment, called Heather "better half".

I tried to talk to her again. "Listen." I whispered. "He's not worth it. I'm telling you, I saw the episodes and Duncan told him to distract you via seduction." I kept my voice low, so Duncan couldn't possibly hear.

Courtney said nothing, just scowled even harder.

"Cody, you look sick." Sierra said concernedly, seeing Cody staring at the Falls in terror. "Do you want me to carry you?" Without waiting for an answer, she scooped Cody up and began running along the tightrope with him.

As it was, Duncan, Courtney and I won. Duncan carried each of us over one of his shoulders. Heather and Alejandro got into some argument and fell, then Sierra and Cody, who got there first but were sent back, got into an argument with Blaineley and Owen and all of them fell off the tightrope. Courtney, Duncan and I answered all the questions correctly, gaining us immunity. Finally, Duncan dumped both of us onto the ground.

"I want a divorce!" Courtney cried.

"Oh, really?" Duncan said sarcastically. "Cause I wanna stay married to your sunshiny self forever!"

I scowled. "Stop arguing, you two, and Duncan, tell Courtney that you had no real problem when Alejandro was flirting with her! You were faking it. Tell her!"

Courtney stopped at that. Maybe she wouldn't hear a word against Alejandro, but I could say anything about Duncan that she'd listen to. She just gave him a glare and stalked away.

I was waiting outside the confessional while Sierra was ranting about something, but I was going to let Cody go first, since he desperately needed the bathroom for some reason. Alejandro was also waiting outside.

When Sierra came out, something weird happened. When Cody said "I do", as in, he needed the bathroom desperately, her face lit up, and then she kissed him and said something about that being a marriage. Even worse, Alejandro played along, just so he could get Sierra to vote for Owen – I got every word.

After Sierra was gone, Alejandro looked directly at me. I opened my mouth to say something, but he beat me to it. "I'm aware that you left the game when we weren't on the best of terms," he said, "But I'd like to leave that in the past. Would you agree to be friends – honestly, this time?"

I tried to read his eyes. Big mistake. He had the most beautiful eyes I'd ever seen, so that I didn't care how much honesty was in them. "It's a competition." I managed. "Friends is a little unrealistic. But if you want me as an ally, I'll agree to it. For now." I frowned. "Although I've already voted, and it's not for Owen."

I'd thought about the most likely to go, and decided to try to vote Alejandro off, yet again. It's not like he had to know that, though. I decided to let him think I'd ally with him, but no way would I do that for real.

The elimination ceremony wasn't too necessary for me. I knew Owen was going to go.

Blaineley burst into fake tears. "I'll miss you most of all, chubby hubby!" she wept, and then looked around at the rest of us. "Was that good? Think the audience will like me for that?"

Finally, it was time to head back to First Class, with two of the most annoying but not as dangerous people on the plane.

**The only person Elle truly likes on the plane right now is Sierra. She finds Cody annoying, despises Heather, Alejandro, Blaineley and Courtney, and doesn't like Duncan too much, either. Please review!**


	44. Chapter 44: Um, I'm Not Hungry

**Ooh, Chinese Fake-Out! I get to boot Blaineley! Thanks to the guest reviewers.**

I spent half the flight telling Courtney that Alejandro wasn't to be trusted, but she refused to listen to most of it. I didn't even like her, yet I wanted to protect her.

"Listen, Courtney." I said exasperatedly. "Someone who makes such corny comments like saying the view is beautiful while staring at you or pretending that they've said too much when they're about to say they like you...they aren't being honest. And giving you a cookie is not a sign they can be trusted. Listen, he's only using you. And he did it because you're an easy target right now. He knew you'd do anything to annoy Duncan."

Courtney gave a sigh. "At first, the only reason I played up to him was to annoy Duncan. But after Australia...I liked him, more than anything. I still like him. And I still don't believe that he's lying to me. Don't get me wrong, I'll believe that Duncan told him to do that to distract me, but he's probably just using that as an alibi so he can spend time with me."

I groaned. "Yeah, Bridgette thought he was just being nice when he helped her across the Yukon, but at least she woke up and realized he'd been playing her. Leshawna thought he actually liked her when he called her fabulous and encouraged her, but the elimination told her differently. Courtney, I can't make you see past a gorgeous face, but when you wake up and realize I'm right, I promise not to say I told you so."

Duncan tried to make peace with Courtney halfway through the flight, too. She ignored him completely. "Aw, come on, Court, can't we stop fighting already?"

She stuffed his head into the wedding cake. "Done. As long as you stay in there, we can't fight!" she said sweetly, and I couldn't help but grin. That was what I would've done too.

"Elle, get me out of here!" I heard Duncan say from inside the cake.

I grinned. "Sorry, you got yourself into this. Eat your way out of the cake."

At that moment, a voice came over the intercom. "Attention, fellow passengers. Feeling alone in the game? Looking for an ally you can call your very own? Consider joining forces with me! You won't regret it!" It was Blaineley, advertising herself as an ally. Ha, as if I'd ever join forces with her. The only people I seriously thought about working with still in the game were Sierra and Cody.

We landed in China, this time. Our first challenge was a race up the Wall, and there were some vehicles around that we could take. My eyes settled on the bike, although I wished I could have someone who'd take me in the rickshaw. There was also an adult-size tricycle, a donkey, a pogo stick, a skateboard, rollerblades, and some weird shoes.

"Ready...set.." Chris began. His phone began playing the theme tune for the show, suddenly. "I better get this." he said. "McLean here. Yeah, I'm trying to do a show here."

"Do we go, or what?" Heather demanded. We were all poised.

"Yeah..." muttered Chris into the phone.

"Yeah, we go?" Alejandro asked.

"Yeah, okay, can we do this later?"

"So we go now?" Duncan said.

"Okay, fine!"

We ran for it, but Chris started yelling after us. "Hey, who said you could go? Yeah, well, watch out! There was a few things I was gonna warn you about, but...forget it."

"Cody, let's get ready to rock the rickshaw!" Heather yelled as she ran. "It is so mine!"

"I don't see a vanity plate on it, girlfriend!" Blaineley said, speeding up to run level with Heather. She even punched Heather out, and soon threw herself into the seat of the rickshaw. "Okay, come and get me, alliance buddy!" She paused. "What I mean is, if any of you would still like to be in an alliance with me, feel free to pull!"

I passed her, running for the bike, humming the song Geoff and I had sang about her pointedly.

Alejandro and Duncan got to the bike (and skateboard first, so I simply went for the nearest unoccupied thing. Courtney had the tricycle and Heather was fighting for it, so I grabbed the rollerblades and started pulling them on, while Cody jumped on the donkey and Sierra bounced around him on the pogo stick. Heather found the weird shoes and pulled them on.

"They don't really look like your style." Blaineley laughed from the rickshaw.

"What are you laughing at? You're aren't going anywhere fast!" Heather snapped at her.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure."

"Diva." Heather muttered.

"Thank you!" replied Blaineley.

As I bladed past Heather, I murmured "Call her Mildred. That's her real name." Hey, I didn't like either of them, but Blaineley was annoying me more than Heather, at this point. In fact, I had noticed that Heather wasn't as bad as she used to be. She was still as bossy and cutting as ever, but she hadn't pulled anything unfair or unnecessarily mean. In her confessionals I'd seen in the episodes I wasn't in, she seemed pretty much like a more mature person than she'd been when we met. Although she did seem to be jealous that Alejandro was paying attention to Courtney.

I managed to pass Courtney, and began to catch up to Duncan, avoiding the booby traps on the race. By the time I was only a few metres behind, Duncan rode past Alejandro, calling "Thought you lost me, eh, buddy?"

I glided faster as Alejandro sped up on the board and passed Duncan. I passed him too, but kept a few metres behind. An advantage would be a small price to pay if it made Alejandro thought I liked him enough to let him win.

However, it didn't seem like it needed to happen. He stopped to help Courtney, and Duncan stopped to laugh at her, so I went on ahead.

I got past the finish line first, and quickly slowed myself down.

Blaineley was already at the finish line, still sitting in the rickshaw. Someone had pulled her after all!

Alejandro and Duncan came in, not far behind me, arguing about who got there first.

"Actually, I got here before both of you." I said proudly.

Chris shrugged. "It doesn't matter. There's no prize for first anyway. If you had waited for me to say the rules, I would've told you that everyone who passed the finish line before I ring the gong gets to join me for a very special lunch, a.k.a, the next part of the competition."

"I still beat you!" Alejandro told Duncan.

"Go sit on some chopsticks."

I stepped between them. "First, I beat both of you, and second, Alejandro was a few inches ahead." Hey, I wasn't even lying. I hated taking his side, but I needed to make like things were cool.

Cody arrived next, followed by Heather, still wearing the shoes. "Just tell me I beat Blaineley." she said.

"Sorry to disappoint you, sweetie." the blonde said. "I had the greatest tour ever...I even did a little shopping." She held up some bags, but refused to tell us who pulled her.

Chris rang the gong after Sierra arrived, but Courtney was still AWOL. Soon, the rest of us were sitting in a Chinese restaurant. I sat between Alejandro and Duncan.

We had to basically eat more than anyone else. "You'll be enjoying real street delicacies," Chris told us, "Deep fried grasshopper..."

I glanced up at Alejandro, who was already looking a bit sick. "Something wrong?" I asked.

"You okay?" Duncan added.

"I'm fine." Alejandro insisted confidently. "Where I'm from, we eat barbecued guinea pig. This is...nothing."

"How's it taste?" I asked innocently. I really did want to know.

"Uh...pretty flavourful." Alejandro answered. I smiled at him innocently, but I was pretty sure he was making it up to cover the fact that he was squeamish about horrible foods.

Before we could start, Chris got another phone call.

"If it's Courtney, tell her she's a loser." Duncan told him.

"Ahem." We turned around at the voice.

"Courtney!" exclaimed Alejandro. "I am filled with relief."

"Oh yeah? Well, I am filled with rage." Courtney replied. "Do you know where I landed? In a pig pen! It's a good thing I have a very strong stomach."

Alejandro was looking at her thoughtfully. "Oh, good to hear."

So Courtney had already lost the challenge. Chris finished his phone call and explained that we would have to eat whatever was put in front of us. Whoever finished last would go sit on what Chris called the "loser bench" where Courtney was sitting. We even had to sing before each meal.

I'll give you a rundown. We started with donkey meat, and Cody dropped out. Once it got to live meal worms, Heather dropped out. I can't even remember what came next, but Duncan, and then I, dropped out. Soon, it was just Blaineley, Sierra and Alejandro left. And something odd was going on – Blaineley kept telling Chef how much she loved the food, and Alejandro kept ducking under the table each time we got something new, but I checked and he wasn't hiding the food under the table or anything.

Just as the next round began, Heather called out "Wait! Stop! Why does Blaineley's food look so much better?"

"It's exactly the same!" Blaineley protested.

Chris went off to answer another call.

Heather ignored her. "And why does Alejandro keep bending over while he's eating?"

"I got a better question." Duncan spoke up. "Why does Courtney keep chewing her cud back here?"

"I do not!" the brunette said fiercely, but the grey substance on the corner of her lips told a different story, and I immediately understood what Alejandro had been up to.

Heather went over to Chris. "What are you going to do about all this crazy cheating?"

Chris ignored her, still talking on the phone. "Budget, blah blah blah, what am I supposed to do?"

"Get off the phone and host the show!" Heather yelled at him. "Alejandro is slipping his food back to Courtney, and someone is giving Blaineley actual food instead of grossocities."

"It is a lie!" Alejandro protested.

"So not true!" added Courtney.

"Get over it!" snapped Blaineley. But Heather still persuaded Chris to make Courtney wear a mask to prove she couldn't eat, and to make Blaineley and Sierra trade bowls.

And guess what? Alejandro and Blaineley both threw up, while Sierra ate all of whatever was in Blaineley's bowl. Then she stood up, holding up a teapot she had with her, singing "_Cody's in First Class with me, and my Love Me tea!"_

So Sierra had immunity and won the challenge. I voted for Alejandro at elimination again. Hey, he'd cheated!

Chris read out all the votes. "Blaineley, Courtney, Blaineley, Courtney, Sierra...ly, Alejandro, Blaineley, and the last vote goes to...Courtney! It's a tie!"

Courtney grinned. "Yes! Prepare to go down, Blaineley! I am excellent in a tiebreaker situation."

"If said opponent is allergic to the challenge." I muttered under my breath. She'd only won the tiebreaker against Gwen because it involved feeding baby koalas eucalyptus leaves, which Gwen happened to be allergic to.

"The producers are breathing down my neck and I'm getting a lot of flak on this budget stuff," Chris said, "So I was thinking, why don't you both take off?"

"What?" they said together.

"How is getting rid of me going to save money?" Courtney demanded.

Chris shrugged. "Weight on the plane, food budget...I dunno. You're just both really annoying me."

"Prepare to hear from my lawyers!" Courtney threatened. "And Duncan, prepare for a personal lawsuit while I"m at it!"

"Not so fast!" said Blaineley. "I have some things to say first! Ezekiel – he's still hiding in the hold! Sierra, Cody has voted for you every single time – get a clue! Heather and Alejandro, just give it up and make out already!"

"Can you get her out of here?" Heather snapped.

Chris grinned. "I don't know. This part's kind of fun."

"Oh, you wanna hear something really fun?" Blaineley said. "They wanted _me_ to host this show. You only got the job because I said no and-" Chris shoved her and Courtney out of the plane.

Sierra and Cody went up to First Class, while I sat around with the others. Why did I have to be stuck here while the only contestants I could stand were in First Class? Oh, well. At least Courtney and Blaineley were gone.

**This was longer than it felt when I was drafting it. Please review!**


	45. Chapter 45: Serengeti Savannah

**Africa now! Cool as. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, ****shadowassasian24**** and the guest reviewer (But Alejandro's there right now, too).**

Duncan carved a skull and crossbones into one of the benches with his knife, whistling.

"Smiling? Whistling? This is the happiest I've ever seen you." Alejandro remarked.

"What can I say?" Duncan shrugged. "It's like all my problems were shoved out of the plane." He smirked, looking at Alejandro and Heather. "Speaking of failed romance, you want me and Elle to hit the common area so you two lovebirds can start building your nest together?"

"Yeah, right!" they said together. "As if!" Finally, they realized they were speaking in unison and glared at each other. "Stop it!"

I smirked. "I think Blaineley was right for once. You two _so _like each other." And when I thought about it, it made so much sense. Alejandro and Heather may have had an antagonistic relationship, but only because they were alike. If they could get past that, they'd be the perfect couple. Plus, I thought they deserved each other. Miss Manipulator meets Sir Strategic.

We arrived in Tanzania, on the Serengeti plains. Chris wore the traditional garb, while he made Chef wear a parka. It turned out Chef had been helping Blaineley cheat earlier on. Not only had he given her proper food in the eating challenge, but he'd also pulled the rickshaw for her, so the parka was a way of Chris punishing Chef for helping her.

Sierra and Cody arrived late, Sierra carrying a half-catatonic Cody in her backpack, with tin cans dragging behind her. "I didn't have time to finish the 'Just Married' banner." she explained. "You like?"

"Very walking dinner bell fralliance." Chris complimented. "You okay in there, Cody?" Cody mumbled something incoherent. "Pure poetry. I can see married life is treating you well." Yep, Sierra had continued insisting that she had married Cody.

"Due to the temporarily weakened condition of my husband," Sierra said, letting out a squeal, "I just love saying that...I'll play for the both of us."

The first part of the challenge incorporated soccer and cricket. First, each of us would run to a little fruit stand set up, grab as many plums as we could, and run back, while the rest of our competitors kicked soccer balls at us.

"Ooh, pummeled by a soccer ball. How painful." Duncan mocked. Understandably, he took a different view after he was hit in the face by one.

Second, there were gourds standing near the stand full of plums. We would use the plums as balls, hitting them with the cricket bat to smash a gourd open. Whoever smashed theirs open first got the advantage in the next challenge.

I tensed, worrying about how much strength I had. The only exercise I did was dance (you don't enjoy parties as much as I do unless you've taken dance classes), sometimes for fun, but mostly as one of my electives at high school.

Sierra was up first, and I waited until she had the plums to kick, seeing as the first few hit Cody. My kick made Sierra stumble over the ball, but then again, I wasn't as good as Alejandro, who knocked most of Sierra's plums out of her hands.

Duncan had to go next, and this time, since there was no Cody, I kicked before he got the plums, but, like he did with Sierra's ball, he kicked it back. Unlike Sierra, though, I managed to dodge properly. However, Alejandro and Heather both knocked Duncan over when they got him in the face.

It was my turn. I dodged Sierra's and Duncan's kicks, but watched Alejandro warily. Sadly, that meant I didn't see Heather's ball flying at me and making me drop a few plums. However, I was ready for Alejandro and managed to kick the ball back at him.

Heather was very good, and kept all her plums. Alejandro was even better, kicking every ball back, and then calmly walking to the line with all the plums he'd taken.

I managed to crack my gourd before anyone else, but Heather actually smashed hers first. Sierra was hopeless, and Duncan complained that he was used to smashing things with the bat.

One of Heather's plums hit Alejandro. "Oh yeah, they're meant for each other." Chris laughed.

"Shut up, Chris!" the two chorused.

"Okay, this is ridiculous!" Alejandro scowled. Apart from speaking in unison on the plane, they'd hit Duncan at the exact same time, and cheered the same way, both scowling when they realized so. That made this the third time they'd spoken in unison.

After Heather cracked her gourd, we had ten seconds left. Alejandro and I smashed ours. Duncan threw the bat at the gourd to smash it, and Sierra only managed to hit Chef in the kiwis with her last plum.

Chris explained that the next part of the challenge was a genuine African safari. With a creature...the feral red-eyed ex-friend of mine known as...Ezekiel. Blaineley had mentioned that he was still hiding in the cargo hold. If I'd known he was there, I would've gone down and talked to him, but it seemed like it was too late.

I tried one more time, through the bars of the cage he was trapped in. "Zeke, calm down!" I pleaded. "Look at me! Do you remember me? Elle? I talked to you at Playa Des Losers, remember, and at the Aftermath studio? I stood up for you?"

Zeke didn't smile, but he calmed down a little bit when I spoke to him. Chris scowled at seeing how well I could already control him.

Basically, the challenge was to catch Zeke after they let him go. And then, Chris gave each of us tranq balls and we found leather pouches to keep them in and slingshots to aim them with inside the gourds. Heather got six tranq balls, Alejandro and I got three each, Duncan got two, and Sierra and Cody got one each...so basically, Sierra got two. And she didn't get a slingshot.

I felt really bad about having to hunt someone who I was once friends with, but I was sure there was no way I could win. Sierra went in one direction, while Duncan, Alejandro and Heather went in the same direction. I decided to go somewhere else, and shot a tranq ball at one point when I came face-to-face with a hippo I pissed off near the water – scary. I knew they were one of the most bad-tempered harmful creatures in the world.

The next time I shot a tranq ball, I accidentally hit...Duncan? Yeah, all of us accidentally hit each other with our tranq ball. Sierra was the one who hit me, Duncan hit Heather, Heather hit Alejandro, and Alejandro hit Sierra.

About half an hour later, Chris' voice pierced my consciousness. "Did you or did you not steal a car?" I heard him saying faintly.

"I was framed!" Duncan's voice answered. I opened my eyes, trying to make myself move properly.

"I want a song, pronto," Chris demanded. "No matter where the tranq balls hit you, and how groggy you might be. Now sing."

While I was starting to move, Heather began to sing. "_Well it's a beautiful day on the Serengeti, the perfect time to snag a pup,_

_I'll find Zeke, and win this dumb game, as soon as my leg wakes up!"_

"_Going alone just makes you look sad and pathetic," _Alejandro sang, "_Plus you'll die without a trace."_

"_We teamed up and almost had Zeke," _sang Duncan. "_I could see the zits right on his face. _Really, we were that close."

"_Almost gets you nowhere around here!" _sang Heather. "_You're a loser duo, that's all!"_

"_Loser is what the lion called you," _Alejandro told her, "_When you couldn't find your balls..._tranq balls that is. I wonder where they went..." Heather rolled her eyes.

"I better sing or I get kicked out." Sierra slurred. "I got something I wanna say...Cody. Cody! Cody...I...I can't feel my face. Where'd you put it? Cody! Cody!"

Heather opened her mouth, but I held up a hand and sang "_Well it's a bloodthirsty time in the Serengeti, the perfect time to induce a nap,_

_I'll find Zeke, and get to first class, as soon as my calves wake up!" _My upper legs were fine, but I couldn't stand up because my calves and ankles were still numb. "_My calves!" _I sang again.

"_My leg!" _Heather joined in.

"_My hand!" _sang Alejandro.

"_My arm!" _added Duncan.

"_Ugh...my face..." _Sierra managed.

"_Wake up!" _all of us belted out. "_Wake up!"_

As it was, Alejandro won immunity that day. He and Heather worked as a team to find Ezekiel, but he shot the tranq ball (since he'd stolen all of Heather's), so he was the one who won.

Since Alejandro was immune and I didn't think there'd be too many votes for Heather, I voted for Duncan. He'd made it to the final four every other season and he was a threat.

Duncan lost, with three votes, including mine. He gave a sigh. "Kind of expected that." he admitted. "I've gotten out of bigger jams than this..." He screamed as Chris pushed him out of the plane, though.

Chris turned to the winner of the challenge. "Alejandro, who are you bringing to the big leagues?"

Alejandro's green eyes glided over all of us. "It's a tough call, but..." his eyes lingered on me for the longest time, but he finally said "Cody." Heather and Sierra both scowled.

I put an arm around Sierra, knowing how upset she'd be. "Hey, don't worry. You'll see Cody again tomorrow, and with both the guys in First Class, we can have a girls only night!"

**I was eager to get past this one! Hope you liked it anyway, and yes, did you know that hippos are one of the most vicious and dangerous species on the planet? I mean, I'm scared enough of crocodiles, and they're more dangerous than alligators, but hippos don't even look that scary! Please review...and what killer animal are you scared of? And seriously, a crocodile would attack a human before an alligator would.**


	46. Chapter 46: Unexpected Elimination

**Yay, Rapanui! Or Easter Island, if you prefer. Whatever. I love this episode! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone and shadowassatian24.**

While Sierra tried to sneak into First Class, Heather talked to me. "Listen, to avoid getting voted off, we need to make an alliance and vote Alejandro off."

I nodded. "Yeah, true. You don't like me and I don't like you, but we can agree on that point. But we need Sierra to ensure our vote works."

Heather gave a sigh. "Yeah. I did all this hard work on Cody, and I bet that Alejandro's undoing everything I did right now."

"So what do we tell Sierra to get her to work with us?" I asked.

Heather shrugged. "You actually seem to like her. I'll probably think of something, but you better find something to tell her too."

We were lucky, actually. Sierra asked both of us for marital advice. "I will do whatever it takes to make it work. So what do you recommend?"

"I am not a therapist!" Heather snapped at her.

"Just pretend!"

"How is this supposed to do _anything?"_

"I need advice, desperately! How do I make my marriage work?"

Heather gave me a sideways glance, and I nodded. Both of us sat either side of Sierra.

"It is time for you to start trusting the girls in your life." Heather told her.

"How will that save my relationship?"

"Relationships don't last forever." I told Sierra. "But girlfriends are friends for life."

"And girl to girl, it is my duty to warn you," Heather said, "Alejandro is trying to destroy your marriage!"

"You need to get him out of the game, and then focus on making it work." I added.

Sierra looked from me to Heather, and then giggled, at Heather more than me. "You're so funny!"

"What?" I asked.

"Not you, her!" Sierra said. Heather just looked confused, so Sierra clarified "As if you want Alejandro to leave! You're so into him, his kidneys are getting crowded."

I went to the confessional. "Sierra's right. It's getting more and more obvious. Heather definitely has something for Alejandro, and if I hadn't seen the way he played Bridgette, Leshawna and Courtney, I'd say he has something for her. But then again, he treats her a little differently from how he treated them, but that could just be because she's more difficult."

We arrived on a little island full of statues. A few of us walked towards one of the statues.

"Another piece of world heritage, destroyed." Alejandro commented.

"That's not the only chiseled rock that's gonna get destroyed today." Heather stated.

"Chiseled, you say?"

"I said gristled." Heather lied. "Arrogant much?"

"Al, you've gotta try this taffy!" Cody ran up, clutching a basketful of candy. I'd seen Chris with it – guess it was an additional reward for winning. It would explain why Alejandro gave it to Cody – apparently the reason he couldn't do the Chinese challenge was because he wouldn't eat anything unhealthy.

"Al_ejandro._" he corrected Cody. "And I am not hungry."

"That's the beauty of candy, no hunger required!" Cody said, clearly on a sugar high.

He offered a few more candies, but was interrupted by Sierra pulling him into a bone-crushing hug. "Let me look at you!" she exclaimed. "Oh, you've changed so much! Way taller!"

Cody actually smiled at her. "Think so?"

"I"m going to have to trim your hair," Sierra continued, "And your nails!"

"Awww, anybody got a camera? You guys are too cute!" Heather exclaimed, digging an elbow into my rib until I copied her expression. I immediately wished I'd never agreed to work with Heather, but it was worth it to get Alejandro out.

Chris introduced us to the first part of the challenges. We were on Easter Island, the place with the giant heads. First, Chris told us that we were going on an egg hunt. Get it – Easter island, egg hunt? But these were regular eggs, except for one thing. The eggs were in different colours. Chris gave each of us a headdress in a different colour. We'd have to collect three eggs in the colour of our headdress, then go into the cavern nearby and get up to the end, the highest point on the island. Whoever got out first got the advantage in the second part of the challenge. Heather's headdress was red, Alejandro's was blue, Sierra's was green, Cody's was purple, and mine was orange.

The statues were odd. Well, actually, Sierra voiced what was weird about the statues. "It's everybody who's been voted out!" All of the eggs were in statues of the other contestants. I found each egg one by one, nestled at the top of Bridgette's ponytail, teetering on Noah's shoulder, and resting inside one of Izzy's curls.

Sierra, keeping up with the girl alliance, weaved a little basket for Heather and I each to carry our eggs in, as well as one for herself.

Actually, it was pretty funny. After she'd made my one, she went to Heather (who had just dropped an egg that was in Leshawna's earring) and began, "I know what you need."

"I do not need to be insulted." Heather answered, scowling. "Or to kiss Alejandro." she added, obviously thinking back to what Sierra had said earlier about her being into him.

Sierra explained that she meant the reed baskets she'd weaved. Then we went into the caves, although the boys had gotten a headstart. Sierra had sternly told Cody that he wasn't allowed to help Alejandro, but if there was one thing Cody couldn't resist, it was candy.

Heather had her own opinions on Cody, due to him working with Alejandro. "Your boyfriend is a loser." she informed Sierra.

"Husband!" Sierra corrected. "And if falling for Alejandro makes somebody a loser..."

"I recommend you stop there." Heather said warningly.

"Guys, peace!" I said. "We're allies, remember? Heather, don't get all defensive whenever someone says something like that, it makes you look more like you're lying. Sierra, don't tease her about it. Anyway, we've got the plan ready. We vote off Alejandro tonight, and-"

"Homewrecker goes home!" Sierra finished happily.

Heather stared at her in disbelief. "That is remarkably...sane of you."

We actually had a few problems. Boulders kept coming down the tunnel, and we narrowly escaped most of them. Then, just as the boys had to run back after they broke most of their eggs and had to go back for replacements (they weren't allowed to bring back-ups, which would've been smashed anyway since all of theirs were broken), one of Sierra's eggs hatched, while it was in Heather's hands.

"Cody...the next generation begins!" Sierra murmured, as a baby condor bird was suddenly in Heather's hands. "Little one, do you know how long Momma and Poppa have waited for you?"

"And the crazy meter goes back up to full tilt loco." muttered Heather. She gave the bird to Sierra, and walked further on. The bird chirruped and flew off to land on Heather's head. She didn't look around, asking Sierra "Did you throw your bird at me?"

No matter what Sierra did, the bird kept returning to Heather. I couldn't help giggling, but I walked on ahead of them.

Only seconds later, I heard a threatening bird call, and the boys ran past me, looking terrified out of their wits. Sierra and Heather were just in sight of me, running just as quickly. Then I saw the giant condor chasing us and ran too. I got out of the tunnel, just behind Sierra but ahead of Heather. Chef closed up the tunnel, and the condor was stuck in there. Lucky us.

Make that unlucky us. Our challenge was to take our eggs and climb up to the top of a huge structure. At the top was a condor nest, guarded by a larger female condor. We had to simply give the eggs back. We'd go in the order of which we arrived, and whoever did it first would win. I just had to pray that Alejandro, Cody and Sierra didn't do it on their first try, otherwise I had no chance at all.

Alejandro, being the first out, got a hockey mask. "Gracias." he said, once he understood. "The giant condor has been known to peck the eyes of predators."

"But I like my eyes!" exclaimed Heather.

"As do I, especially when they're shooting daggers." Alejandro told her, earning a death glare from her. "Yes, like that."

Of course, there was one more thing...the song. "It's for your own protection." Chris told us. "Keeps the birds calm. I'm lying. Or I'm not. Take your pick."

I didn't hear much of Alejandro's part of the song, since his voice was quiet and he was climbing pretty high up. In fact, I only managed to hear his first line, which, if you want to know, was "_I'm tall, I'm tan, I'm young, I'm handsome..." _Okay, true by all accounts, but the condor didn't need to hear that. He probably tried to calm the condor down for the rest of the song, but all I saw and heard was him putting two eggs into the nest and then being knocked back down. His last egg smashed.

Cody was next, and his voice was louder, so I heard every word he sang. "_I, oh, I...I've got problems with condor, problems with condor._

_Why, oh, why, am I not at home, I ponder._

_Trust me, oh, trust me, I'm your best friend, and I'll never eat eggs again!" _He didn't get any eggs into the nest, but they landed intact. If Sierra, Heather and I didn't win, Cody would get another chance.

Sierra's voice was shrill and loud, too, although not melodic. "_I'm a mom now, so don't be giving me flak!_

_Cause my first chick's just hatched, out of his yolk sac,_

_So hush my sweet, let me into the final four!" _She only managed to get one egg in before she was knocked down. I resolved to just put my flax basket in, since that would be all my eggs in one go.

I began to sing as I climbed, copying Cody's melody. "_Condor, my condor, I'd never hurt your young ones,_

_So please just let me get it done,_

_Condor, dear condor, you're bringing us pain,_

_So give me leeway, just one small grain!" _I put my flax basket in, and immediately made to climb down. "_Thanks kindly, condor, I'm up for the final four!"_

Heather gave me a death glare when I got down, since she didn't get a turn. I offered to take her eggs up, too, since she wouldn't gain anything by doing it herself, but Chris made her go up. She actually managed it, and gave Sierra's chick to the condor, too. When Sierra saw the mom feeding her chick, she decided that maybe she wasn't ready to look after a baby like that, anyway.

As we'd planned together, I was sticking with my girls and voting for Alejandro. But he wasn't going home, that night, at least. There was one other vote for him, but it was pretty clear Heather hadn't voted for him, because there were three votes for...Sierra!

I hugged the purple-haired girl goodbye. "Keep in touch on your blogs, yeah?" I said. "I'll miss you."

"You really are a sweetheart!" Sierra sniffled. She hugged Cody the hardest. "Win it for us!" she murmured.

Finally, Sierra took the Drop of Shame, screaming all the way down.

**I know, that was stepping a little way out of canon, but hey, it doesn't matter. The story will work without Sierra having to blow up the plane. Besides, I've already planned out what Elle will do.**


	47. Chapter 47: Happy Birthday, Cody

**So, let's continue writing. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, shadowassasian24 and the guest reviewer.**

I decided to invite Cody up to First Class. He was my best chance at an ally I could trust, and the only person on the plane I didn't despise, apart from Chef. I'd always found him a little annoying, but he was a sweet guy on the whole.

"So...Sierra's gone." I said to make conversation. "You happy?"

Cody grinned. "Yeah. It was nice of her to help me out so much, but she just liked me a bit too much."

I nodded. "She was a sweet person underneath it all, though. She was totally devoted to making sure you were still in the game. Think you can survive?"

"To be honest, I didn't think I'd get this far." Cody admitted. "But now that I am, there's no way I'm giving up now."

"Good," I said, "Because we need to talk about the threats. Thing is, you were helping Alejandro all day. It was because he gave you candy, wasn't it?"

Cody lowered his gaze for a moment and admitted "I just love candy. And he claimed he didn't want it, so he let me have it. I wanted to help him."

I nodded. "Yeah, but he's the biggest threat." I stated. "If we want any chance of making it to the final three, he has to go next. And only then can we vote out Heather. I mean, have you noticed some of the stuff Alejandro's pulled this season?"

Cody shrugged. "What stuff?"

I counted them off. "He tricked Bridgette into getting her tongue stuck to a flagpole. He distracted Leshawna and made her throw a challenge. He built up DJ's confidence, then tore it down when it turned out it wouldn't help the team and made him lose the challenge. He voted out Noah and I because we knew too much about him. He strung Courtney along while she was useful and seemed to actually enjoy knowing that Courtney was too emotionally vulnerable and weak to see through him."

At that moment, my mobile beeped, showing I had a text – from Sierra! It said: _I'm at Aftermath studio. It's Cody's birthday tomorrow – remember it for me, since I can't be there with him!_

I texted back: _No probs. I'm trying to convince him to help me take down Alejandro._

Sierra immediately texted again: _Good. Eliminate that homewrecker!_

I giggled. "What?" Cody asked.

I couldn't stop laughing. "Sierra just texted me. She's still calling Alejandro a homewrecker for working with you. Somehow I think he'd be more likely to pursue Heather than take you away from her. He's not into guys. But, listen, we need to vote him off next."

Cody still looked doubtful, but he nodded. "It's true he's the biggest threat. I'm in."

I had a weird dream that night. I dreamed that I was in the finale against Alejandro, and that just as I was about to win, he came out of nowhere and beat me. But then Chris gave me the million anyway and didn't really explain why. After that, for some reason, Heather came out of nowhere and accused me of stealing her place in the finale. Okaaaayyyy...

When I woke up, I was pretty confused. But no matter what happened, the only thing I wanted to happen from that dream was being in the finale and getting the money – but for winning. And the only one I wanted to battle for the win was Cody.

The next morning, we landed in a dusty landscape. "Welcome to Drumheller, Alberta," Chris said brightly. "A world heritage site. It has the wickedest collection of dinosaur bones on the planet. In front of you is a giant pit with lots of super ancient dino bones. Grab whatever bones you can find to make your own life-size dino. I'm calling it 'Design-a-saurit'." The four of us groaned at the pun. "I know, they should pay me just to come up with these. I'm that good."

At that moment, my cellphone vibrated, but I paid no attention. Chris would confiscate my phone if he knew I had it.

We could also find stuff in the cargo hold. I found some earthy brown paint and some green, plus a bit of silvery glitter glue, so I decided to take that. Cody grabbed some paper (which Heather stole), and started looking for bones.

I was just squirting the glitter glue onto the last green-painted bone of my dinosaur when Chris called out "Time's up!"

We looked at Alejandro's dinosaur first. As usual, he'd done pretty well. Our dinosaurs didn't have to be realistic, but his one was actually a real dinosaur.

Heather had decided to use Chris' narcissism to her advantage and put his face on her dinosaur, and sure enough, Chris seemed to love it, especially since Heather said it was a hit with the women.

We got a bit grossed out by Cody's dinosaur, though. He had a tiny one, but its body turned out to be made of fossilized dinosaur dung.

Finally, I showed them mine. "It's a Genusaurus, kind of my statement about keeping it real, instead of lying or cheating." I said proudly. "I call it that because it shows its true colours – literally. The green and brown show how natural and genuine it is. It's also very friendly. And yeah, it sparkles in the sun, but it's a lot warmer than a fairy vamp." That made all of us laugh.

Chris made US judge. Basically, for some reason, he had a lie detector, so we had to truthfully say which of our other contestant's dinosaur's was the best.

Heather attempted to say Cody's, but she got a shock. "Yeah, might wanna tell the truth, Heather." Chris said with a smirk.

"Fine." Heather scowled. "Elle's statement for being true was the best...and I really like glitter glue. I have a whole secret stash of the kind that comes in pens...do not judge me."

'Oh, we are." Chris told her.

Alejandro tried the exact same trick as Heather, and than said truthfully that he thought mine was the best.

I went next. "I wasn't sure who to vote for, but I'm very impressed with Heather's." Not a lie, but I wasn't saying whose I was most impressed with. I actually was very impressed that Alejandro constructed a real dinosaur while the rest of us relied on our imagination. But I was impressed with Heather's too...just not as impressed. I felt I couldn't honestly say much positive about Cody's, so I chose to say something true about Heather's that made it sound like I thought it was the best. And I didn't get an electric shock.

Cody was less decisive than the rest of us, but he chose mine, too. For my trouble, I got an electric drill for the next challenge.

The second challenge involved barrels. The interns were supposed to bury these particular barrels, but the ones they buried were actually the fuel supply. We had to each dig up a barrel. Whoever got theirs first got immunity. For getting one vote, Heather got a pickaxe, and Cody was counted as coming third and got a kiddie spade and pail.

"How am I last when I created the only realistic dinosaur?" Alejandro questioned. "That has to get me something."

"Yeah, you'd think so." Chris laughed. He finally told us that he would be sending the occasional boulder our way, too.

"Hey, Cody." I said. "Wanna work with me? We can both use my drill."

Cody smiled. "Okay!"

While we tried to find a good place to start digging, I checked my phone. I had a missed call from Sierra, so I called her there and then.

"Hey, Sierra?"

"Elle!" she squealed. "I"m watching you on TV right now – you're making that dinosaur!"

"Yeah...we're onto the second part of the challenge now." I told her. "But I won." I covered the mouthpiece and whispered to Cody "Will you talk to her?"

Cody's eyes flickered around for a moment, and then said "Okay."

I talked into my phone. "Did you want to talk to Cody?"

"Of course I do!" Sierra answered. "It's his birthday, remember? I have to talk to him!"

I had forgotten, but I passed the phone over to Cody. He started speaking a little nervously. "Hey, Sierra?...I'm okay, how are you...it's what?...I totally forgot about it! It's very sweet that you remembered...yeah, Elle's got the advantage and wants to work with me...yes, we are in the middle of a challenge...I'll tell her...thanks...yes, I guess I'll see you then...Bye!" He ended the call.

I sighed. "Sierra reminded me – Happy Birthday, Cody."

"Don't worry about it, Elle." Cody said. "My own parents forgot last year, and I forgot this year, too."

When we finally did find a barrel, I told Cody to take it. "Think of it as a birthday present. You deserve immunity. I'm not here to win, anyway, I'm here to make sure Alejandro goes down. As long as you vote with me, we should be able to get him gone. Even if Heather doesn't vote with us, the worst is a tiebreaker."

I was the last to find a barrel, actually. Cody got immunity, while Heather and Alejandro both turned up with a barrel each at the same time. I suspected they'd been working together again.

Finally, we all sat next to the plane around a little campfire Chris had made. "I have a Season One tribute treat!" he announced, holding up a plate with three very familiar bits of fluff. "Marshmallows!" He threw the first ones to Heather and Cody.

"And just to increase suspense, I'm going to read the votes out!" Chris said. "One for Elle." I froze, frowning. "One for Alejandro...another one for Alejandro! And the last vote goes to...Elle! It's a tie!"

I shot to my feet. "Again? How could _two _people vote for me? What did I do?"

"Calm down, Miss Drama Queen." Chris said. "Save that voice for a moment. You see, I came up with a _special _tiebreaker." He pulled out a small portable TV and DVD player, and showed me some footage from the show. It showed the songs I'd missed – the one Courtney and Heather sang about Duncan and Gwen's kiss, the one Team Amazon sang about shearing sheep (and Heather being jealous that Alejandro was paying attention to Courtney), and the one both teams sang after Cody built a model of Gwen's face out of parts for a boat.

"You see, Elle," Chris said, "You missed a lot of musical challenges. And you missed today's one. So I figure you should compete by singing Alejandro's part of today's number. Heather, would you mind singing your part for Elle's performance?"

Heather folded her arms. "I already sang! Why would I have to do it again?" Well, basically, she had to. Alejandro just watched all this, looking smug. Like he'd already won.

"So what's the song?"

"I'll play you the footage." Chris said. "Here." he pushed a piece of paper at me, which had lyrics and musical notes written all over it. It was titled _This Is How We Will End It._

Next, Chris showed me the footage. I recognized Alejandro's singing voice immediately, although it was actually significantly better than usual. "_I left...Bridgette stuck to a pole, robbed Leshawna of her fabulous soul, made even Courtney lose control..." _etc. We watched the whole scene. Heather was trapped in a hole by a boulder and spent the song convincing Alejandro to help her out, while he made the point that he'd screwed girls over before – why shouldn't he do it to her too? Thing was, though, Alejandro eventually found that he couldn't just leave Heather there and helped her.

"Not fair!" I protested. "I'm not a guy! I can't sing that low!"

"Sing an octave higher, then." Chris said. "Either way, if you can sing it even better than he did, you're still in the game. Don't worry, you'll have the music."

I grimaced. It was all I could do to imagine how I would feel singing those lines, able to eliminate my biggest threat by simply walking away.

My cue came. I took a deep breath and sang, "_I left...Bridgette stuck to a pole, robbed Leshawna of her fabulous soul, made even Courtney lose control,_

_Now I'm gonna leave you wedged up in a hole._

_This is how we will end it, this game we have played!_

_This is how we will end it, your bill must be paid!"_

"_Ooohhhh..." _Heather sang. "_Shouldn't have mocked you for having to dig, help me out and I'll be your human drill-rig!"_

I almost missed my cue this time, but quickly caught back on. "_You think I'm gonna fall for that? Ain't a tea party, it's combat!_

_This is how we will end it, this game we have played!_

_This is how we will end it, your bill must be paid!"_

"_Ooohhhh..." _Heather sang again. "_I'm wedged in a hole, this isn't right, if I'm going down, make a fair fight,_

_It's beneath you to abandon a girl in a ditch, offer me my dignity, I haven't got a stitch!"_

It was my turn again, and I tried to keep my voice softer this time, the way Alejandro did. His voice was pretty harsh for most of the song, but something was gone as he sang the last bit. "_I left...Bridgette stuck to a pole, robbed Leshawna of her fabulous soul, made even Courtney lose control,_

_But I can't leave you wedged in a hole._

_This is not how we'll end it, this game we have played!_

_This is not how we'll end it, but there's a bill to be paid!"_

Chris clapped. "Very nice, both of you. Cody, as the only non-biased person here, I think you should take another trip to the lie detector and tell us whose singing was the best!"

Cody took the one lie detector and admitted, "I'm sorry, Elle, but I just felt there was something else there when Alejandro sang it. Maybe it was because there was more emotion behind it."

Chris smirked. "Sorry, Elle. You're out. Again. But...you get to stick around! These three are getting themselves to their final destination to decide the final two, while you get to hang with me on the way there!"

Oh, joy. But at least Cody was still in the game. I didn't have to give up hope just yet.

**This was always my plan, to have Elle lose a tiebreaker. Once I knew she'd be in this episode, I knew it. Hey, who can skip something with a song this epic? So...what was your favourite WT song? Mine was probably "I'm Sorry", "Who You Gonna Root For", "Stuck To A Pole" or "Sisters", although I love this one. Guess I just think Bridgette's voice is really pretty. Please review! Oh, and yeah, Heather voted for Elle in this version. Because Alejandro didn't pull the trick on Sierra, she didn't break her promise and Alejandro is not particularly angry at her, but he is less confident about winning, so he will still be relatively aggressive towards Heather at this stage.**


	48. Chapter 48: Still Some Hope (Lose Al)

**So...who's up for a ride to Hawaii! And yeah, I changed some of the lines for "I'm Gonna Make It" because Sierra isn't here, and Heather didn't vote for Alejandro. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, shadowassaisan24 and Gage the Hedgehog (yes, she will be).**

The challenge for the final three was to get to the last destination themselves, as Chris had told me. He gave them a GPS each, and told them that they had to get to...Hawaii. Yes, Hawaii! I'd wanted to go there since forever – after all, beach parties were the best kind of party there was, and it was a pretty place, even if I didn't manage to get enough people to party with there. But according to Chris, everyone else from this season and the other seasons were there – so maybe I could do that once the finale was over. With everyone there except Alejandro and Heather – even Courtney would be invited. Although she probably wouldn't want to be there, since Duncan and Gwen were invited too.

Chris let me have a fourth GPS, so I could monitor what was going on, as well as him. The GPS system also had a walkie-talkie built into it, so I could hear everyone talking.

"Focus!" I heard Alejandro muttering.

"You better focus, cause it is on!" I heard Heather yelling into her walkie-talkie. "I am gonna smoke you for breakfast!"

"Bring it!"

"Blah, blah, blah, guess what? I can just turn you off!"

"Of course you can, you're an expert at turning people off!"

Cody took some stuff out of the cargo hold and fashioned himself a hot-air balloon before Chef flew us out of there. Alejandro took the truck that had a bunch of the animals from the challenges of the season – the yeti, the baby seal, the bears, the pandas...however, the truck was unloaded into a carriage on a train that Heather just happened to be on.

There was a weather warning of hail around the same time that Heather got into trouble. Because the truck loaded into the train had all the animals from the challenges, there were some hilarious things we saw from the camera. Hint – even a yeti seemed to have fallen in love with Alejandro. But anyway, Ezekiel was one of the animals there, and although Alejandro seemed to be able to control him, he would've let the guy attack Heather. Both competitors ended up on the top of the train. While it was hailing.

_Ding-ding! _"I pride myself on my timing." Chris said into the GPS walkie-talkie.

"Are you kidding me?" I chorused with the other competitors.

"You know the answer to that by now." grinned Chris. "And Elle...remember how you skipped a few musical challenges?"

"No way." I said firmly. "I'm out."

"Your choice." Chris shrugged. "You find your own way to Hawaii."

I sighed, but I could see from the camera, Alejandro had already started the song. "_This show's a train, it's moving fast, you and I weren't meant to last." _He pulled Heather into dance position.

"_Drawing me in just wasn't right, so look out now, you're in my sights." _He pushed Heather off the train, but we saw her climbing underneath the carriage.

She sang as she did so. "_Mr Fair now, suddenly, I have to barf now, excuse me!  
Don't try to make me feel ashamed," _and here, she climbed to the top of the next carriage, where Alejandro had just jumped onto, and grabbed his ankle, "_I know you would've done the same."_

They began to sing together. "_I'm gonna make it, you can't stop me now, just you try,_

_Our fortune's waiting, it's time for you to say bye, bye, bye!"_

This seemed to be Cody's cue. He began singing, "_I never thought I'd get this far, let's face it, I'm no TV star._

_But now I'm in the final three, unless I get caught in that tree!"_

Chris looked at me. I put the GPS on and said, "Hey, Cody..." Then I began singing. "_You're gonna make it, they can't stop you now, let them try._

_Your fortune's waiting, those two can kiss it all bye, bye, bye!"_

Alejandro and Heather were back in dance position, staring into each others' eyes. "_You are the worst, why must you torment me?_

_It's all a game to you, but not to me!" _Heather pushed Alejandro off the train, and he called out her name as he fell.

Cody, Heather and I all sang the chorus one last time

Okay, just to let you know, Chris sucks. When Cody accidentally ended up in the telephone lines and lost the balloon but not the chair, he made me go and help him to stop him from giving up. We ended up getting to the dock in Tijuana via fireworks. The guy at the fireworks stand helped me because he was a fan of the show and would rather Cody win than Heather.

We only arrived at the dock after Heather and Alejandro, but we got into one of the boats first, and was soon on our way. But then Heather passed us, followed by Alejandro, who kept bumping Heather's boat.

"These aren't bumper boats, jerk!" we heard Heather yelling.

We caught up to Alejandro early on, and while I drove, Cody started engaging in a...swordfish fight? Who knows? There happened to be a swordfish in our boat, so I guess Alejandro had one too.

We would've lost then and there if Alejandro hadn't gotten blown up by one of those mine things. As it was, Heather won, but Chris insisted that Alejandro and Cody tied.

"Elle, go join the others." Chris ordered. I went over to stand with DJ and Leshawna, since Bridgette and Geoff, as hosts of the Aftermath show, were standing apart from everyone else – yes, Bridgette was back! As for Blaineley, she'd had a little mishap during the Drop of Shame and ended up head to toe in bandages.

Everyone was in teams, including everyone who wasn't in the season. Most people were Team Cody, like me. Courtney, Katie, Sadie, Lindsay and Tyler were all Team Alejandro. Blaineley was apparently Team Heather.

Before Chris started the next episode, he recorded Cody and Alejandro's new confessionals about how they felt for tying, and having to do a mini-challenge to decide Heather's competition in the finale.

"I only let Heather beat me to give her a false sense of confidence." Alejandro claimed. "But how will I explain to those at home that I tied with that pathetic Cody? Oh, my brother Jose will be compiling his insults already."

"I made it all the way to the final two-ish!" Cody said excitedly. "I can't believe how close I am to the million! There's just one massive thing in my way...Alejandro, against just me! I can't believe I'm saying this, but...I wish Sierra was back in here with me!"

I nudged Cody playfully after we were shown this. "Hey, didn't my help count for anything?"

Cody smiled. "You were great, Elle, but even you have to admit that Sierra was the one that pulled me through a lot of the challenges, since we were on the same team and all."

I frowned. "Yeah...I guess." I sighed. "And for me, part of it was to get revenge on Alejandro for everything he pulled. Sorry." I ruffled Cody's hair like he was a kid – he certainly felt like a younger sibling to most of us others. "All I ask is that you beat Alejandro now."

Cody smoothed his hair down and sighed. "I'll try, Elle. I'll try."

**I know that was a short chapter, but the next one will be longer, promise! Please review!**


	49. Chapter 49: Love n' Lava

**Woohoo, the finale! It's not over yet, but this season is! Thanks for reviewing, shadowassasian24, Elizabeth Life Stone (?) and Gage the Hedgehog.**

After I'd finished talking to Cody and Heather had questioned Alejandro about the brother he'd mentioned, the rest of the peanut gallery caught everyone's attention.

"Go Team Alejandro!" cheered Sadie. "He's even hotter in person."

"Why are they in teams?" Heather demanded. "And why does my team suck?"

"The peanut gallery's playing a major role in choosing a winner." Chris answered.

"Sweet!" Duncan exclaimed. "Guess we're all voting on the winner again!"

"Did I say my team sucks?" Heather said. "What I actually meant is they rock!"

"You think we're fools?" Leshawna yelled at her. "You and Alejandro are done!"

"We're here for you, Cody, especially me!" Sierra called out. "Believe!"

The tiebreaker was crazy. Alejandro and Cody had to wear coconut bras and grass skirts, for one thing. Heather was tied to a pole in the middle of a wooden platform, where the guys would fight with foam batons. Basically, whoever freed Heather first would be in the final two.

"If no one happens to free her, does that make Cody and I the final two?" Alejandro questioned.

"Hey!"

"Won't work, I already checked." Chris answered. Oh, did I mention that the platform was in shark-infested waters, so if anyone fell off, they'd fall to their deaths? And also, there was fire either side of the platform.

We watched them fighting.

"Stay focused, Codykins!" Sierra cried out.

"The kiwis!" suggested Harold. "Go for the kiwis!"

"Stay strong!" I yelled out. "You can't give up now!"

But Courtney's cheering for the opposite side was just as loud. "Go Alejandro! Squish him! Like a bug!"

"Where's MY support?" Heather demanded. "Hello, Team Heather!" Leshawna flipped her the bird, making me giggle.

Things were getting worse for Heather, though. A flaming arrow was shot at the pole, and the flames licked down it, getting dangerously close to Heather's hair extensions. She decided enough was enough, and just made up something to distract Cody. Soon enough, his foam baton had been knocked into the water.

"Consider yourself disarmed...and dis-platformed!" Alejandro said, knocking Cody into the water. A shark dived on the kid, and Sierra immediately went in to save him. She literally bashed the shark on the sand, yelling "Drop it" until it let Cody go.

"Shoving Mr Popular into shark-infested waters for no reason?" Heather said as Alejandro untied her. "You just handed me the million. I can't wait for the vote."

With a shock, I realized she was right. Heather was the lesser of two evils, and the only people not glaring at Alejandro were Tyler, who was knocked out, and Courtney, his biggest supporter (I would have to try to burst her bubble again...was she really messed up enough to still like him?). Even the rest of Team Alejandro – Sadie, Katie, and Lindsay – were all glaring at him.

But we weren't voting on the winner, thank goodness (I despised Alejandro the most, but something felt really wrong about voting for Heather – I'd hated her since the first season). The finale challenge included the nearby volcano. Heather and Alejandro would make sacrifice figures out of driftwood and pineapple, and fashion them to look like each other. The winner would be the one who threw their sacrifice into the volcano first. "Now, you each get to choose two helpers."

Leshawna stood up. "I dare either one of you to pick me! Come on."

Alejandro looked at his choices. "I choose Courtney and Tyler."

"YES!" Courtney cried.

Lindsay nudged her knocked-out boyfriend. "Wakey wakey, Tyler." She only succeeded in punching him out. "Oh, he'll be so mad about this tomorrow."

"I suppose I could choose someone else..." Alejandro said like he was thinking about it.

"Thanks, I'd love to!" Lindsay gushed. She'd probably already forgotten about the whole throwing-Cody-to-the-sharks thing.

"I appreciate your enthusiasm."

"Any enthusiasm for me?" Heather said hopefully.

Cody stood up. "Alejandro is going down!" he exclaimed.

Harold stood up too. "I remain a loyal member of Team Cody, so if he's in, consider my mad skills all yours."

Basically, the helpers would start by bringing the driftwood and pineapples. Heather and Alejandro each had to stand on a mat and direct their helpers. They weren't allowed to move off it.

And they also had to sing the song of the episode.

"_My ladies, please head straight, that's it, you're doing great," _Alejandro sang.

"_Search through that wood, tout de suite, find me some giant feet!"_

Heather sang next. "_Come on guys, move it fast, quick, quick, I won't be last!_

_Grab logs to match his frame, all overbuilt and lame!"_

At that point, Alejandro and Heather began singing together. "_I'm gonna win it, and you can't take it!_

_I'm right here in it, and you just fake it!"_

"_Is this thigh fat enough?" _sang Courtney.  
"_Uh-huh." _Alejandro answered her.

"_Hey," _Heather sang.

"_Gosh,_ i_s this neck thick enough?" _Harold asked, holding up a rather large piece of driftwood. He began to rap - alhough I didn't really get much past "_Now it's Evil versus Wicked!"_

Alejandro started the next verse again. "_That's it now, hurry back, I need arms weak and slack._

_Her butt is scrawny and flat, and she ain't all that..."_

Heather's descriptions were just as unflattering. "_Get me two knobby knees, and arms like logs of cheese!_

_Bring me a big fat head, move quicker or you're dead!"_

They sang the next words together again. "_I'm gonna win it, and you can't take it!_

_I'm right here in it, and you just fake it!"_

"_Arms so right it's ill," _Courtney exclaimed, "_Worth one fifth of the mil!"_

"_I'll pay you back somehow," _Alejandro assured her, "_Pineapple head me now!"_

Finally, the rest seemed to be a full on duet. "_I'm gonna win it, and you can't take it!_

_I'm right here in it, and you just fake it!_

_I'm gonna cash it, you'll never hit it!_

_You should trash it-"_

"_Cause I just did it." _Alejandro finished the song on his own, holding his finished sacrifice.

I should add that most of us were taken up to the top of the volcano early, while Alejandro and Heather had to carry their sacrifices up alone. They did have a river of lava to get across, where their helpers could help their finalist, or hinder the opponent, but since I wasn't a helper, the rest of us waited at the top. The helpers got up there a little earlier than the finalists.

Lindsay arrived earlier than the other helpers. "Hey, Linds, where's everyone else?" I asked.

"Cody said there was a sale on mascara up here!" Lindsay said breathlessly. "Where is it?"

I gave a sigh. "Cody was lying to distract you. But how about we go to the mall together once this is over?"

Lindsay didn't reply, because the other helpers were up, and pretty much seconds later, the first finalist arrived...it was...

Alejandro. I gave an audible sigh, but I should've seen it coming. Heather was skilled, but not quite that skilled.

Alejandro looked at his Heather-shaped sacrifice. "Thanks for everything!" he said to it, and then...kissed the pineapple. I would've laughed if he hadn't been about to win. He held the sacrifice high...

"NO!" Heather was there, leaning on her sacrifice. "I...can't catch my...my breath..." she wheezed.

"You're gorgeous when you've lost." Alejandro complimented her.

Heather dropped her sacrifice. "I worked so hard!" she cried, tears starting to spill from her eyes. "And now you're just gonna take the mil and vanish from my life forever! Just throw your stupid doll in the stupid volcano already!"

I'd never seen Heather cry before. Was it real tears? If it wasn't, what was she doing?

Whatever it was, it distracted Alejandro. "So what are you more upset about losing?" he asked. "The million or...me?"

"Are you cracked?" Heather asked, wiping her eyes. "I would never fall for a jerk like you!"

"Then why are you blushing?"

"Hello! We're like right beside the hottest thing on the planet."

"Yeah." Chris added, who was the only cool person around, with the suitcase by his side, blocks of ice surrounding him, and a fan on one side of him, drinking a tropical cocktail.

"Admit it." Alejandro said. "You're in love with me."

"What?" Heather said, glaring at him. "I don't love you! I love-" she stopped. A few of us gasped. I glanced at Noah, who just shrugged. He'd said Alejandro was into Heather, but not the other way around. Actually, Alejandro had a weird expression on his face. It was a smile, but not a smirk, like the way he usually looked. But it was also...strange.

"Uh...hate!" Heather corrected herself. "I meant, I HATE you."

"I know what you meant." Alejandro replied, still calm, "And I must confess, at first, yes, my intentions were purely strategic-" Yeah, that was what he called it.

"Can the confessing wait?" Chris interrupted. "Kind of on a schedule here, bro."

"That is no longer the case," Alejandro continued, now holding Heather by the forearms so they were making eye contact, "Because you...you have stolen my heart."

"Oh, that is so beautiful!" exclaimed Owen, looking like he was about to cry.

"Even if it _is _Heather." Sadie put in.

"Our connection goes deeper than any game!" Alejandro continued, a dramatic sound to his voice. "Together, we could take over the world!"

Heather looked up at him, smiling. "Well...I suppose I might actually feel a...a little something..."

"_Mi amor..." _Suddenly, Alejandro moved his face slightly closer, and they were suddenly kissing.

Yeah, it surprised me too. I'd never entertain the thought that either of those two would feel something real for anyone else. Sure, they were very alike, but that was why I was sure they'd never work.

I was distracted by a sound of pain from Alejandro. Heather had kneed him while they were kissing, and he dropped onto Chris' melting ice blocks

"A little something called victory! So long, sucker!" Heather pushed the ice cube, and we could hear Alejandro's cry as he slid down the volcano.

"Boys are okay," Heather said, picking up one of the sacrifices, "But a million dollars is way better." She held up the sacrifice and hurled it into the volcano.

"YES! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" she cheered. The lesser of two evils. I didn't cheer, but I felt a smile cross my face.

"Nice..." said Chris. "But...isn't that your sacrifice?" He pointed at the rather square, masculine looking sacrifice, resembling Alejandro. Heather's one.

I froze, the smile slipping off my face.

"You just threw Alejandro's in the volcano!" Chris continued to Heather, "Which means Alejandro wins!"

"NOOOOO!" Heather shrieked.

"Hey Alejandro, you might wanna come back up here!" Chris called.

We all knew this was bull. Heather did it. She should have won.

"Oh, you didn't throw any pineapples in the volcano, did you?"

"There are signs everywhere!"

I turned at the voices. Two elderly Hawaiians were standing there. I turned around to see that there were several signs, just behind us.

No way. And in the next moment, feral Ezekiel came out of nowhere. He pulled the prize money away from Chris and fell in the volcano with it.

"Zeke!" I cried. How could he do that?

Suddenly, I remembered a conversation I'd had with him on the bus. "_I've gotta win this season, Elle. I've just gotta win, eh. If I don't, I might..."_

"_What?" _I'd asked.

"_I'll do something. Something crazy."_

Now he'd done it. He was gone. But we had to run for it. The volcano was erupting.

Alejandro was running the other way – up! We were running down, but I heard him say the words that sealed his fate. "Hey, where's my prize money? I demand to get what's coming to me!"

Had my life not been in danger, I would've laughed at it all. Once we were all safe in the water, I saw it. The lava washed over Alejandro, and I saw him, almost charred, most of his hair burned off, screaming.

It was time to go home, this time for real. Chris was getting a new cast for the next season.

I couldn't believe it. I'd survived three seasons of a reality show. It was over.

**Only one last season left! I can't believe it...**


	50. Chapter 50: Starring Fifteen

**Here's the next chapter! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Gage the Hedgehog, shadowassaisan24 and the guest reviewer (I have DVDs of every season, and my version has Heather winning, but I'm familiar with all the alternate endings apart from Sky's, so...)**

Chris didn't ask me back to Total Drama until I was eighteen. The fourth season featured an entirely new cast of characters, and I watched the show, called Total Drama Revenge of The Island, taking place back at Wawanakwa, now a place with toxic waste everywhere, and mutants. One of the contestants, a fame hungry but fairly nice girl called Dakota, got exposed to toxic waste in a mine for longer than anyone else and mutated into a green-haired orange-skinned hulk-like creature known as the Dakotazoid.  
After the season, Chris was arrested for toxic waste dumping, but he was paroled a year later and that was when he asked me back. The new season was at Wawanakwa again, now cleared of toxic waste, and it was called Total Drama All-Stars, bringing back seven members of each cast, the old and the new – sorry, make that eight of the old cast.

When I got on the plane, piloted by Chef, I saw the new cast members first. I recognized them all. First came nice girl Zoey. Then there was Mike who had several split personalities but was a nice guy overall and Zoey's boyfriend. To round out their friendship trio, there was smart but weak Cameron, the smallest contestant apart from another Season 4 contestant who wasn't returning – and I wasn't sure about that. After that there was sneaky Scott, bossy Jo, arrogant moronic Lightning who couldn't even tell Jo was a girl, and gamer Sam, who always had a crush on Dakota and actually liked her better as a mutant.

Then I saw the old cast. First I saw Heather and Courtney, and inwardly groaned. They were on the season? I wasn't too fond of Duncan, who was also there, but I saw Sierra was there too, and I gave her a hug.

"Sierra, how are things going?" I asked.

"They're great!" Sierra said enthusiastically. "I am SO excited to be here again!"

Gwen was with us too, and I hugged her. "So are you still with Duncan?" I whispered to her, giving the delinquent a sideways glance. Gwen nodded, looking at Courtney anxiously. The brunette sent her a death glare that rivaled Heather's.

Finally, I spotted Lindsay and gave her a big hug, just as I had with the others. "Linds, how are you?" I asked.

"I'm good!" the blonde smiled. "It's great to see everyone!"

There was a speaker in the plane where we could hear Chris introducing us as each of us was shoved out of the plane by Chef.

First, Mike was thrown out, turning into each of his four personalities as Chris said them. I think he turned back into Mike as he hit the water.

Zoey didn't pay attention to the way Chris described her. "Mike!" she called anxiously, and jumped into the water.

Lightning was next. "You call that a dive? Watch this! Sha-" he was cut off as Chef kicked him out of the plane.

Cameron was dropped out next. "This is highly illogical!" he cried as Chef dropped him.

Chef dropped Sam the same way. "Not cool!" the gamer cried.

On the other hand, Chef actually had to pull Scott off him before he fell.

Jo put up more of a fight, pushing Chef away and yelling at Chris "You're a dead man, McLean!" Chef pushed her and she finally followed everyone else.

Courtney was the first of our cast to be dropped. "This is NOT in my contract!" she screamed.

Next, it was Gwen's turn, and we heard Chris calling her Courtney's 'bestie-turned-boyfriend-stealer'.

"He wasn't her boyfriend at the time!" Gwen cried as she fell.

Everyone kept falling.

"Bring it on!" Duncan said, arms folded.

"I hate Chris!" Heather screamed (I noticed her hair, still in a ponytail, was as long as it had been when we first met).

"This is so screwed up!" I shrieked as I fell.

"I'm flying!" exclaimed Lindsay, before realizing that she wasn't. She screamed.

Sierra was the last to jump out. "For Cody!" she called out, making the biggest splash yet. Chris had also brought...Ezekiel? He was still feral, but then the robot next to him, the Drama Machine, sent Zeke flying to the other side of the island.

Chris greeted us happily, telling us all about how the season would work and how the island was now free of toxic waste (which Sam wasn't happy about, since he only came back to become a mutant like Dakota).

On the bright side, the winning team got a better cabin than the losing team each day. The losers had the usual cabin, but the winners got to stay in an amazing spa hotel with a masseuse, butler, hot tub...

"And in honour of your All-Star status," Chris said, "I'm dividing you into teams based on your past performances, Heroes vs Villains."

I wasn't sure which I was. I wanted to be a Hero, but there were so many good people here. Probably a Hero.

Chris called our names. "Heather, Duncan, Lightning, Jo, Scott, Elle and Gwen. From now on, you're the Villainous Vultures!"

"Sha-team!" Lightning exclaimed. I stared in horror at everyone.

"Why am _I _on the Villains' team?" Gwen and I said at the same time.

Courtney glared at Gwen and said "Because you stole my boyfriend and became the new Heather!" After all, New Heather was one of the nicknames a lot of people had called Gwen since that season. Even a couple of my friends at home had said it, referring to the actual Heather as "Old Heather."

"Yeah, what she said." Chris said. "And Elle, give up pretending to be sweet. Some of the things you pulled – you really are evil!"

"I've always had good intentions!" I said. "What have I really done?"

"I've done so many good things!" Gwen protested. "I'm not a villain, I'm nice!"

"Being bad is cool." Duncan told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "And now we're on the same team, so that's good, right?"

"I guess." murmured Gwen.

Courtney, Sierra, Lindsay, Cameron, Mike, Zoey and Sam were the Heroic Hamsters.

"Wait a minute!" Jo said. "Didn't you say fifteen competitors were coming?"

Chris shrugged. "I needed a seat on the plane for the Ezekiel prank. But if you're so set on having a fifteenth competitor, you can have the robot."

The Drama Machine wheeled itself to stand with us, beeping. It couldn't talk. However, it seemed to like Heather, since it wheeled itself really close to her. "Keep your distance, toaster!" she snapped, pushing it away.

All the challenges would be variations of the old ones, and our first challenge would be like our first one ever – we had to find the key to the spa hotel by cliff diving into shark-infested waters.

Scott audibly gulped. I remembered watching him in the last season. He'd accidentally taken a tooth from a mutant shark called Fang (he had arms and legs) and the shark held a grudge against him ever since. In fact, Chris had sent Scott flying during his elimination (a catapult called the Hurl of Shame) with Fang and when he'd come back for the finale, he was in a trauma chair. Scott seemed fine, now, but I knew he had to be terrified of sharks. Despite the fact that I didn't like him, I sent him a sympathetic look.

Basically, several keys would be imbedded in the sand. Our job was to avoid the sharks long enough to grab one of the keys, but only one of them would be the right one. After we'd jumped, one teammate would take us to the spa hotel in one of the baby carriages, like in the New York challenges. We'd try it, but if it was the wrong key, we'd have to go back. Once we were back, another teammate would jump. The first team to unlock the spa door won a night there, and immunity.

"Meet me at the base of the cliff in fifteen minutes, chop chop!" Chris said.

"Wait!" Mike called. "Shouldn't we change into our swimsuits or something first?"  
"Sorry! No time!"

All of us had to walk through the forest together, and I analysed the rest of my team. At least Gwen was with us, so I walked alongside her, although Duncan was on the other side.

"Ugh, I said keep away from me!" Heather yelled at the robot.

Courtney kept sending death glares at Gwen, at least until Duncan returned the glare and Courtney blanked him.

Jo and Heather also came into a minor conflict. "Guys, just because Chris labeled us villains doesn't mean we have to act like villains!" Gwen told them.

"Yeah, we're a team!" I pointed out. "We have to work together if we have any hope of winning. Which doesn't mean either of you are allowed to boss us around!" I added. I'd seen Jo in the last season – she was way too bossy. And Heather always tried to tell her team what to do.

Both girls glared at me, and the whole team made sarcastic remarks.

At the beach, our carriages waited – red for us, yellow for the Heroes. First, we had to pick our carriage driver.

"I'll drive!" Scott volunteered.

"No, I'll drive!" Jo snapped.

"Sha-please, you're the slowest go-kart driver ever!" Lightning argued.

"But I'm also the shopping kart racing circuit champion!"

"Scott should still drive," I argued, "He's the one who's scared of sharks! Come on!"

"Jo, wouldn't you make a better diver, since you're so athletic?" Gwen suggested tactfully.

"No one tells me what to do, blondie – and that goes for you too, goth ball! And don't even try to kiss me!"

I exchanged a "WTF?" look with Gwen. Why would either of us want to kiss her? Even if I was a lesbian, I couldn't imagine myself having any kind of romantic feelings towards Jo.  
"Oh please, who would want to kiss you, anyway?" I shot back. "Besides, I've got DJ back home." I'd promised to text him every day, and he said he'd be watching. Geoff was also going to watch on my request. I didn't know about my friends, but Bridgette was over at ours so much that she'd probably watch with Geoff...although they'd probably miss half the programme, the amount of time they spent making out.

Jo ended up driving. I quickly ran to the old outhouse confessional. "My team sucks. Gwen's great, but I already hate Jo. I don't like Duncan much, I despise Heather, and I'm not too fond of Scott or Lightning. The only thing that could make things worse is Courtney being switched, or Alejandro being with us. I am SO glad he's not back – besides, he'd be on our team for sure!"

Courtney made Lindsay drive for the Heroes, and the rest of us headed up the cliff. We were greeted with an unpleasant surprise below.

A frighteningly familiar shark popped out of the water and waved a hand. "Fang!"

Damn it! There was no way Scott would jump now.

Lightning and Courtney were the first jumpers. Duncan jumped into the carriage first, while Courtney and Lindsay were both saying something to each other – in fact, Courtney tried to switch with Lindsay as the driver, but Chris said she wasn't allowed to.

Jo came back with Lightning long before Lindsay was back with Courtney. Duncan jumped next, and when Courtney finally arrived back, Sierra jumped, popping out of the water with a key, calling out "I found one that looks like Cody!"

Okaaaayyyy. She hadn't changed much. Why would she be so excited about this season if she was still stuck on Cody, anyway? She'd seemed obsessed with Chris early on, too, but as the season went on, she'd obviously started to think he wasn't as great as she imagined. She'd also told me after the season that the reason she knew so much trivia about him was because of her mom. Yes, Sierra's _mom_ had a major crush on Chris and knew more about him than Sierra knew about Cody. And they hadn't even met!

I jumped third, around the same time as Mike. I avoided the sharks okay, and soon had grabbed the first key I found. I jumped into the baby carriage quickly.

"Listen up, blondie, I'm in charge of this team!" Jo said as she ran, pushing the carriage. "So you do what I say, get it?"

I smiled at her and said meekly, "Sure, Jo, it's not like I want to be in charge. But somehow, I think Heather thinks she's in charge. I'm not bothered about who I follow. All I'm bothered about is whoever wins." Let her think I was going along with her. I'd just do what I could to win.

Neither team had any luck until it was time Scott was meant to jump. Duncan and Lightning were trying to pull him off the rock. "It's you or the robot, and I'm pretty sure the robot isn't waterproof!"  
"Yeah, but it's shark proof!" Scott stammered, refusing to jump. In the end, wouldn't luck have it, the robot ended up on the edge of the cliff, which crumbled. It fell into the water.

"So long and good riddance!" Heather proclaimed. There were a few moments, before there was an explosion out of the water. An all-too-familiar figure shot into the air, holding a key. We all gasped.

"YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" Heather screamed.

It was Alejandro. Yes, the one person I'd hoped never to see again had been trapped inside that robot. Had I really tempted fate by saying that was one of the only things that would make our team worse?

The last time I'd seen him, he'd been covered in lava, screaming from the burns he'd gotten. Of course, I couldn't say that, though. He looked like he'd pretty much healed, but being on this show meant I was going to be stuck with him. Again. Oh well, at least the Villainous Vultures was the right team for him.

However, he had the right key, and we won the challenge.

I talked a little bit to my teammates before we were summoned to the campfire ceremony's peanut gallery to watch the first Hero be kicked off. I decided pretty early on that I'd stick with Gwen. Everyone else had true villainy, although admittedly Duncan wasn't as bad as everyone else, and Lightning was more annoying than evil. Heather and Jo were almost the same, bossy, cold, and manipulative. I also resolved to keep an eye on Scott. He kept throwing challenges last season. I wasn't about to let him do it again. I hoped the temptation of the spa hotel would help.

I did talk to Alejandro, a little bit, though. I felt a bit sorry for him, for the first time. Yes, he deserved a knee to the kiwis. Yes, he deserved to be pushed down the volcano and trampled. No, he did not deserve to be burned by lava and sealed inside a robot suit for over a year. On top of that, he claimed his legs were numb from the time he'd been stuck in there. So I welcomed him to our team and tried to make peace.

Before the bonfire ceremony, began, Gwen went up to Courtney. "Hey. Although I technically didn't do anything wrong, I'm really sorry about the way the whole Duncan thing went down. Here," She held out a bouquet she made. "I picked these just for you." In reply, Courtney sneezed.

"Oh no, you're allergic?" Gwen exclaimed.

"Told you you're a villain!" Courtney scowled. Honestly, couldn't she get over it?

Before the Heroes voted, Chris needed one of us to volunteer for a special reward. Only after Lightning volunteered did he explain that the reward was a night on Boney Island, where an immunity statue was hidden. A mixed blessing, I guess.

Lindsay was kicked off that night. Chris showed us the new elimination device – a giant toilet called the "Flush of Shame". I waved to Lindsay as she went down the dock with her team sadly. I wished Courtney had been flushed instead – she'd been close, since she'd been the one that made Lindsay drive.

**I like the next episode. Please review!**


	51. Chapter 51: A Likely Ally

**Yay, it's time to look for a statue! Thanks for your reviews, Gage the Hedgehog, shadowassaisan24 (maybe), Elizabeth Life Stone (tbh, the Villains' team is more fun to write, and with Gwen on that team, too...), link9753 (not exactly...see the A/N at the end of this chapter for more information) and the guest reviewer.**

At the breakfast table that morning, I sat with Gwen. Scott and Duncan were at the other side.

"I can't wait to be a millionaire!" Scott remarked. "I got up at five this morning to watch the releasing of the doves, and I'm just gonna say it – it was beautiful."

"Yeah, this is the life." agreed Duncan. "And if we keep winning challenges, we can live like kings all season!"

"To villainy!" The boys clinked their glasses.

Gwen gave a sigh. "Yeah. Villainy." I shrugged.

"What's up with you, doll face?" Duncan asked, addressing Gwen.

"Oh, nothing." Gwen said. "Just, uh, you know, wondering how Lightning's doing on Boney Island?"

I giggled. "I think he'll survive. He got to last season's finale, remember? He's strong. Unless he forgot his protein powder this season."

"I just hope Lightning doesn't find the invincibility statue." Jo said, sitting down. "If we don't vote him off soon, he'll be too strong for us!"

"So maybe, we should do it right away." Scott said slyly. "Throw the next challenge!"

I put down my fork at that moment. "I'm wise to you, Scott. You throw _one _challenge before we merge, and you get flushed! I'm not giving up a stay here for anything."

"True enough." Scott agreed easily. "This is sweet! Do you know what I slept on last night? A pillow, filled with feathers! Back on the farm, it's a burlap snack filled with small animals. You ever had a pillow bite your face?"

"I would like to enjoy my breakfast now, and that will require you to stop talking!" Jo snapped.

"You're having steak?" I said, looking at Jo's plate.

"Got a problem with that?"

I shrugged. "No, a heart attack from too much meat is _your _problem, not mine."

Chris called us to the beach after breakfast for our next challenge, although I don't think Alejandro and Heather actually got around to breakfast – I didn't see them until we got to the beach (by the way, Alejandro now walked on his hands, and was pretty quick on them). The challenge was based on the challenge in Paris, where we had to find pieces of a statue and arrange them. We'd have to find seven pieces of a replica of a landmark of a place we visited on the World Tour.

Lightning was brought back, but he had no invincibility statue.

As the winners of the last challenge, our team got shovels, while the Heroes would have to use their hands to dig. As it was, if Heather hadn't been tough, she would've had to too. Lightning grabbed two shovels, and Heather had none. When she asked for one, he refused. "I need both. When this one gets tired, I'll use this one!"

Heather ended up with a shovel, and Lightning ended up with one shovel and a shovel-shaped bruise on his face.

It got worse. We had to put the statue on a podium. Around it was a moat full of crabs, and there were also some booby traps in the sand. Not good.

While the Heroes went into a huddle, Jo and Heather started trying to organize us, arguing over what kind of strategy to use. Jo said we should start by digging from one end and go to the other, then Heather pointed out that all the pieces could be at the far end. When the idea was to go from both ends to the middle, they argued about what way to do that.

I'd had enough. "You two, quit arguing and start digging!" I snapped. "Just agree on a strategy already!"

"Some team." Gwen muttered from where she was.

"Exactly!" Heather said. "A team without a leader is like a horse without a head, it just runs around blind!"

"I'm pretty sure a horse without a head doesn't run anywhere." Gwen told her.

Jo spoke up this time. "Agreed, which is why I should be this team's leader!"

"No, I should!" Heather argued.

"Let's let the team decide!"

"Fine!" And they both started calling to a team member.

"I give up!" Gwen exclaimed, standing up and almost instantly tripping over, right next to Alejandro. I crept closer, seeing that expression I recognized.

"I hope you know that I appreciate your efforts." he told Gwen, in that soft voice he always used whenever he used his powers of seduction. "You are as wise as your skin is translucent."

I jumped up, ran over and said "Um, Gwen? I need to talk to you." I pulled her away, whispering "What's with that look on your face? Don't listen to Alejandro – besides, you've got Duncan!"

Gwen gave a sigh. "Look, Elle, I'm not in the least interested in Alejandro, and I know what he's like, but...I mean, look at his eyes."

I sighed myself. "Yeah, I know, it's easy to get lost in those eyes...but don't. He'll just eliminate everyone who falls for those tactics."

Heather was the first person on our team to find a piece of the puzzle, and she and Jo still fought over it. Hours passed before a booby trap knocked Cameron into Scott and uncovered another piece. I found another piece, and so did Gwen. Unfortunately, I also hit a booby trap – a balloon that covered me in some kind of green slimy goop. Jo and Lightning found another piece.

While Scott was digging, I saw him hiding a puzzle piece belonging to the Heroes on our side, but Mike, who was right now controlled by his personality Manitoba Smith, found it – and also found a booby trap – bees.

Scott screamed and ran, accidentally hitting Manitoba in the head with his shovel in the process. Luckily, he seemed okay, though, so I went back to digging.

"That's seven!" Lightning called out. "Let's start sha-building!"

It was pretty obvious that we were missing a piece, the minute we built it. Lightning had miscounted, and we still needed one more piece – we had Big Ben, and needed the clock face. Unluckily, the Heroes were already building the Statue Of Liberty, and just as we found the clock face, the Heroes won, and all burst into cheers.

As for us Villains, we had to send someone home.

Gwen tried to talk to Courtney again, congratulating her on winning. Instead, she accidentally activated another booby trap and Courtney was covered in garbage. To make matters worse, Chris went on about how Gwen was on the right team. Personally, I didn't see why she kept trying to talk to Courtney. That girl knew how to hold grudges – I personally thought she was never going to forgive Gwen. Unless she dumped Duncan, maybe.

I walked with Gwen to get our bags from the hotel and relocate to the cabins for the night. "Gwen," I said, "I know we haven't really hung out since I got kicked off the second season, but I was wondering. We're the only people on our team who aren't really villains. Wanna team up? I miss hanging out with you."

I'd never offered an alliance before, but I needed an ally on my team and I figured Gwen would prefer to ally with me rather than anyone else on our team. She agreed, and even agreed with me about who to vote off.

"Lightning." I suggested. "He cost us the challenge. And he's annoying. So far, Scott didn't throw either of our challenges, Jo and Heather may argue but they're still strong players, there is absolutely no reason to send Duncan home, and from a strategic standpoint, I think we'll have to keep Alejandro around."

Lightning was pretty shocked when he was voted off. "Sha-WHAT?" We walked to the Flush of Shame to watch him leave. "Tossing away your strongest team member? You're gonna regret this – especially you, Jo! You're a total sha-AAAHHH!" He screamed as he was flushed.

Finally, I trudged back to the cruddy cabins with my ally, and two girls I couldn't stand.

**I like the next episode, too. Please review!**

**Also, I've got an idea. Is anyone keeping up with the Ridonculous Race? Well, what do you think about if I put Elle into the story, and had her instead of Brody paired up with Geoff? Brody's OK, but he's not really a new character...he's just a flatter version of Geoff. Besides that, it would give me a chance to see if they work well under pressure when they're on the same side. They haven't done that before! What do you think...should I do it?**


	52. Chapter 52: Team Go Team

**Can't wait to see Jo leave! Thanks for reviewing and your opinion on putting Elle in, suntan140, Gage the Hedgehog, shadowassaisan24, StarHeart Specials, Idkkkkkikia, FOWLKON, Elizabeth Life Stone, and the guest reviewer.**

I didn't get much sleep that night. "Thanks again for blowing the challenge, Jo." Heather said accusingly.

"Me? You were the one who wasted time arguing instead of digging!"

"Well, I wouldn't have had to argue if everyone had just done what I told them to do! I'm the team member with the most experience!"

"It's everyone's fault for not working together!" Gwen burst out. "Now cram it! I am trying to sleep!" She put a pillow over her head pointedly.

"Goodnight, Heather." I said pointedly. "Goodnight, Jo." I think they got the message, because they stopped arguing and went to sleep. I had the bunk below Heather and opposite Gwen, while she had the one below Jo.

Apparently, both girls had the same idea the next morning, because after we had breakfast gruel thrown at us through the door by Chef and were on our way to the next challenge, Heather came up to apologize to us. Jo immediately did the same. After they were gone, we talked about it.

"You know they're trying to play us, right?" I whispered.

"Of course, and I love it! It means that we have some power around here!" Gwen grinned.

However, it wasn't all fun and games among our teammates. When Courtney started trying to burn Gwen with her glare, Duncan refused to try to stop her, because Courtney had been blanking him. She would have looked away if he'd tried to stop her, but he wouldn't. "But let me know if you catch her looking my way." he added, making Gwen stop as he walked away.

"Some boyfriend." I couldn't help muttering.

Gwen shrugged. "I don't know what's up with him and me. Things were a lot better before we got involved with this season." She smiled wanly. "Speaking of which, how are you going with DJ?"

I grinned. "Things are going okay. I texted him last night and the night before, and he says he's missing me, but he's got a lot of stuff going on back home, so he's really busy keeping on top of things."

Alejandro stopped before passing us, although he didn't seem to notice me, only addressing Gwen. "If you were my girlfriend, I wouldn't let anyone gaze at you lest they spoil your ethereal beauty." He continued walking on his hands. "Just something to consider."

I glared after him as Gwen and I continued to walk. "Seriously?" I sighed. "He's been out of that robot suit for like less than three days, and it seems like he hasn't learned anything about karma."

Gwen gave a sigh. "I don't like him either, Elle, but there's no point in telling him to go away unless it goes further than a couple of comments."

I nodded. "It should be okay as long as you don't let him distract you."

The challenge seemed like a callback to the paintball deer challenge, although Chris obviously thought it was more like some challenge from TDA – the war movie challenge. Basically, we each had to grab a crate of supplies in the heart of the forest and play a version of paintball with leeches. One crate had paintball guns and the other had slingshots and buckets. The Heroes got a headstart to find the crates. Whichever team managed to get a leech stuck on everyone on the other team won.

However, Gwen suggested that we take a different route to cut the Heroes off – and it worked! We went straight for the bigger crate.

"The big one, go for the big one!" we could hear Courtney yelling at her team, but before they could get close, the seven of us jumped in front.

"Whoa, where'd they come from?" Mike exclaimed as we went to open the crate and found our guns, as well as a cannon.

"I'll take the cannon!" exclaimed Heather, Jo, Scott and Duncan, then to each other, "No, _I'll _take the cannon!"

"We use it as a team." Alejandro spoke up. "Right, Gwen?" His eyes flickered over to me. "Elle?"

"Yeah, obviously!" Heather cut in before either of us could speak.

"That's what I was going to say!" Jo added.

We started off working together, but we all knew that all seven of us together would make us sitting ducks. "We should split up." Gwen suggested.

"Agreed." Alejandro said. "I'll go with Gwen."

"No, I'll go with Gwen!" argued Heather.  
"As if I'm letting either of you go anywhere with Gwen!" Jo snapped.

"None of you are going with Gwen, because I am!" I told all of them. "That OK, Gwen?" I asked, but before she could answer, Alejandro let out a cry.

"I'm hit!" A leech had been shot at him.

Zoey appeared from behind a bush with her slingshot. "Sorry – but not totally!"

We all started shooting, and Jo fired the cannon. Unfortunately, she hit Scott, and Chris counted that as another point for the Heroes. We all glared at Jo when the loudspeaker said that.

"What? Dirt boy got in the way!"

Heather shot a death glare at her. "You can take your excuses, and stick 'em in your-" she was cut off when Mike showed up and shot a leech at her.

"Okay, I'm out of here!" I called.

"Avenge me!" I heard Heather yelling as the rest of the team split up.

I stealthily went to see if I could find Zoey. She was a major threat, since she'd made the final three last season and had shot Alejandro.

I think Zoey and I spotted each other at the same time. I shot, Zoey shot, we both ducked, but she'd aimed low and I'd aimed level. Her leech landed squarely on my forehead, and my leech glided inches over the flower in Zoey's hair.

"Sorry!" Zoey called again.

"No, you're not!" I called back, grinning in spite of myself.

Zoey laughed. "Okay, maybe not!"

As it happened, we only got a few Heroes. Sierra got herself, then Cameron shot at Gwen, and as I discovered, Duncan had been there and threw himself in front of it. Then Mike got Gwen, just after she shot Cameron.

Jo had also gone looking for Zoey, and had found Courtney and Sam. Courtney had used Sam as a shield, then Zoey showed up and shot Jo.

"Game over!" Chris' voice echoed from the loudspeaker. "The Heroic Hamsters win! Although some of them didn't behave all that heroically...Courtney!"

I voted for Jo that night. No question. Her fights with Heather were driving me nuts, and she shot Scott. She obviously knew that she was on the chopping block, because she was trying to convince everyone to cut Heather. Tempting, but I couldn't stand either girl. The choice was pick a girl I knew pretty well and despised who had been a strong player every season, or pick a girl I didn't know too well, but despised and who had made it to the final five. I could count on Heather's skills more than I could count on Jo's, and we needed those skills. Plus, after the third season, I wanted to see if Alejandro was going to try to pick up where he left off with her. Maybe then he'd quit hitting on everyone else.

To be honest, the peanut gallery was the most interesting part of the bonfire ceremony. Sierra was discussing with Cameron who was going home. "My money's on Jo."

"Unless she can convince them-" Cameron began.

"To cut Heather!" they said at the same time.

Sierra's eyes went all dreamy, and she seemed to be hallucinating, because the next words out of her mouth were "Oh, Cody, we really do think alike!"

"Yeah," Cameron said, "Except I'm Cameron, not Cody."

"Oh, Cody, don't be silly!" Sierra said. "Who wants a foot rub?"

Cameron screamed. I felt a bit sorry for him. If she started to imagine Cameron was Cody, he would be in for a tough time. I may not have been on their team on WT, but I'd seen what happened to Cody. Even when I wasn't there, I'd seen the episodes – most specifically the time Sierra had been describing a "happy place" to him, which was "a beautiful mountainside full of Codys". He'd been sick. And there was also the time she fed him that weird tea she got in China and made him get sick, because she thought it would make him fall in love with her.

Cameron volunteered to go to Boney Island that night.  
"Don't you think someone on your team might more deserving of a night on Boney Island?" Chris asked, quickly coughing out "Courtney!"

"That's okay, I want to go." Cameron answered. His team said their goodbyes.

"He's so little, maybe the animals won't notice he's there?" Mike said hopefully.

But before Chris told us who we were flushing, he wanted to do some reshuffling. "Today, one Hero acted more like a villain, and one Villain acted more like a hero. So pack your bags and switch your teams...Courtney and Duncan!"

I gasped. Of course, Duncan had taken a leech for Gwen, and Courtney had shielded herself with Sam. But this was hard for me. I never thought much of Duncan, but I couldn't stand Courtney.

"I don't wanna be a Villain!" she whined.

"And I don't wanna be a lame-o Hero." added Duncan more calmly. But Chris wasn't going to listen to them.

As they switched places, Duncan smirked at his ex-girlfriend. "At least now you have to stop blanking me and admit I exist."

"Yeah." Courtney admitted easily. "You exist. SO WHAT?"

"I think I liked the blanking better."

Gwen was the first to try to welcome Courtney. Then she accidentally kicked a bucket of leeches all over Courtney. "I swear, I didn't see the pail!"

Finally, Chris told us who was getting flushed. Sierra was right – it was Jo, of course.

"What?" she exclaimed. "Are you all nuts?"

It was a relief to go back to the girls' cabin knowing that Heather wouldn't have someone to fight with. However, it wasn't so fun to go back with an unhappy Gwen and a fuming Courtney.

**I'm glad Courtney wasn't mean for the whole season, but she was annoying while it lasted. Please review!**

**Update on RR's place: Okay, so all of you want Elle on the race, but everyone's asking for her to be paired up with DJ or Bridgette. So...who should it be? I'm kind of leaning towards Bridgette on this one – they haven't really gotten to hang out since the start of World Tour, while she and DJ were still able to get some relationship time in. So...reviewers?**


	53. Chapter 53: Challenges Are Sweet

**Oh yeah, the pancake ep...the part I remember the most was when Courtney got covered in green jelly. Thanks for reviewing and voting for Elle's RR partner, shadowassaisan24, Elizabeth Life Stone, RainbowFluffBall, behind-the-heart, Gage the Hedgehog and the guest reviewr.**

The next morning was rainy. We were greeted by powdered gruel thrown into our cabin by Chef. Ugh!

There was a knock on the door two minutes later. Courtney answered, and found Scott. "You gonna finish your gruel?" he asked.

"What? No!" Courtney said. "Gross!"

Scott actually seemed to like the stuff. He scooped up a block of it that had landed on Courtney's head, and smirked at her. "You clean up real nice." he remarked.

"Creepy." I said. "Scott, you've got the gruel. Get lost, okay?" Look, I hadn't gotten dressed yet – I was still in my long blue pyjama shirt with panties! I was not letting any guy on our team see me wearing something that skimpy. Well, seriously. Scott was such a creep, and Alejandro may have been gorgeous, but he was a total jerk. I was kind of glad to lose Duncan (even though I would've been happier if it didn't mean getting stuck with Courtney), but if he was still a Villain, I know he would've teased me if it had been him at the door.

After I was dressed, I went to the confessional. "I know I said the only thing that could make our team worse was Courtney switching. Well, and Alejandro being here, but he was on our team all along. Life, why do you hate me? I just hope that I can stay sane on this team."

I got a text that morning. The episodes had just started airing, and after the first episode, I got the message: _Good luck! We can't believe you and Gwen are considered villains – hang in there, you guys are worth tons more than your team, Bridge &amp; Geoff, xoxo._

I texted back immediately: _Don't worry, guys, I'm taking down all of them. I'm taking down Alejandro the second we merge! If he wins again...love, Elle._

Our challenge began once the weather cleared up. Chris called us all out, and we were shown the challenge. Two giant stacks of pancakes stood there. Our challenge was for each of us to scarf down as much of the pancake as we could, one by one on a time limit. When the time was up, us Villains would hear a bird screech, and the Heroes would hear a more melodic sound. Then the contestant would run an obstacle course, similar to parts of a course from last season. Oh, and a thing that spun around like crazy, which Chris only added because Scott scoffed at the rest of the obstacle course. Whoever hurled was benched, and they wouldn't be able to do any more eating.

"Nice one, Scott. And yes, I was being sarcastic!" Courtney yelled at him. Scott just smiled. "What? _What_?"

"You're pretty when you're mad." he remarked.

"Barf." Heather commented.

Anyway, it was time to start. Sierra rushed up to start for her team.

"We need a team leader." Alejandro stated, looking up at Heather. "And I think it should be you."

"Fine." Heather scowled. "You go first, but you better have a big appetite!"

"As you wish."

I scowled at Heather. "Yes, send the guy who couldn't take disgusting food in China!" I snapped. "Chef's pancakes are bound to be just as bad – and if he can't take unappealing food, I bet he can't take unhealthy, either."

Alejandro, surprisingly, did pretty well, even though he was the first to find a booby trap that Chris had forgotten to mention – a couple of vicious rates. Sierra found one too – fish eyes, which made her hurl after she ate them, thinking they were blueberries. So she was benched, and Cameron ran up to continue her turn. (Sierra did some cheering for him, but I noticed she called him "Codycam" and "Camdy"...I think Cameron was the victim of Cody withdrawal Sierra was going through).

Alejandro did a pretty awesome run on the obstacle course, and didn't throw up. Scott went up next. Apparently, he'd eaten too much powdered gruel earlier, but no one on our team cared. "Quit whining and get to chowing, or whatever your people say!" Courtney ordered.

"Well, when you put it like that..." Scott said with a little grin.

"And stop smiling at me!" Courtney yelled after him.

It was my turn next. I did accidentally end up finding a scorpion, but the screech sounded before the stinger hurt me enough for the infirmary. The spinner was horrifying. And once I was out, I barfed.

"And Elle is out!" Chris announced. I sighed and plopped down next to Sierra, who was taking pictures with her (battered) Smartphone.

"What happened to your phone?" I asked, seeing all the duct tape on it.

"Someone crushed it, but it's okay!" Sierra said. "I managed to repair it!" At that moment, the screen went blank.

Gwen took her turn, but she hurled on the obstacle course and got benched. Heather wanted Courtney to go next.

"I'm not going after Gwen!" Courtney whined. "She'll leave a booby trap in there for me."

I knew Gwen wouldn't do anything like that – heck, she'd confided to me that she only came back to make things right with Courtney. However, Courtney did hit an interesting booby trap. "Green jelly!" she screamed as it exploded all over her. "Get it off me, get it off me!"

"Why's she freaking out so much?" Cameron wondered.  
"Season One, Phobia Factor challenge!" Sierra called."She's terrified of that stuff!"

I felt sorry for Courtney. But at least it wasn't me facing my worst fear all over again. The last thing I needed was to face anything near to another blood test.

We had the lead for a long time, but then Sam went up for the Heroes. He had to tag Zoey out first (meaning we had to tag someone out too), but he was good. Alejandro got Heather to tag him, and although we finished the pancakes, Sam finished the obstacle course first.

That night, we sat around the campfire for the third time, when Chris said that he had a couple of announcements. "Gwen didn't accidentally-on-purpose serve Courtney an ouchie today!"

"The day's not over yet." Courtney said, glaring at Gwen. I scowled at her and gave Gwen a thumbs-up. I wouldn't bother trying to make friends with Courtney, but it was a good thing, even if it was a lost cause, so I supported her.

"And," Chris continued, "After reviewing the footage of today's challenge and laughing a lot, turns out the Heroes _didn't, _in fact, complete the challenge!"

We gasped, and Mike said "But Sam finished the pancakes and the obstacle course first!"

Actually, Sam hadn't eaten all of the pancake. He still had some of it left in his pockets. "I just saved a little bit in case I had to go to Boney Island again!" he explained. "It's a terrible place! I'm sorry."

So we won, and the Heroes voted Sam off, although I'm willing to bet it was close between him and Sierra, who got the last marshmallow.

Sam stood. "Sorry I blew it, guys. But you would've done the same, if you were me and had to spend a night in that scary bitey place..."

Scott volunteered to go to Boney Island, while the rest of us headed back to the spa hotel.

**Finally, the chapter's done! Please review!**

**Anyway, the RR votes have been cast, and to be honest, I expected the votes to be closer. But the winner is, voted for by everyone but one...Bridgette! So next up, please send in suggestions for the Team Elle-Bridgette label! I'm still having trouble thinking of one.**


	54. Chapter 54: Luna Loony

**OK, the blue moon challenge. Thanks for your suggestions and reviews, Elizabeth Life Stone, behind-the-heart, shadowassaisan24, StarHeart Specials, Gage the Hedgehog, and the guest reviewer. Team label at the end of the chapter!**

We spent most of the next day in the spa hotel, since Chris didn't call us out until sunset, and Scott didn't return until then, either.

I went to the confessional halfway through the day. "Okay, so Gwen still wants to be friends with Courtney, but she's still not taking any notice. I've thought about it, and I've made a decision. I'm going to help Gwen. Yeah, I can't stand Courtney, but she's better than Heather or Alejandro. At least Courtney doesn't play people that much. Maybe, in time, I might even learn to like her – nah, but I think I could tolerate her."

Scott only came back when Chris called us out, but when he fell over, Courtney was the first to ask him if he was okay. What's more, he seemed to like her being bossy.

Our challenge was a race across the island during an interesting blue harvest moon, and we got the advantage for winning the last challenge. We got the map. The Heroes had to wear bacon hats and sausage tails to attract the vicious animals.

"This'll be a piece of cake." Heather said confidently.

Alejandro gave a sigh. "You mean, a piece of _pie._"

"Listen, you-" began Heather, but it was time to run.

Things were pretty normal until the moon literally went blue and we met up with an alligator who was...wagging its tail. "Um..." said Courtney. "Since when do gators do that?"

"This moon is like no other." Alejandro answered. "It must be causing the animals to become their opposites."

"Wow, Alejandro, you're so smart!"

I think all of us were completely freaked out to hear that. And see it.

Heather had spoken! And what's more, she had the sweetest smile on her face. Another moment, and she was hugging the alligator and speaking in baby talk to it.

I couldn't decide whether it was funny or downright terrifying. None of us had ever seen Heather act this way, and none of us were acting any different from the moon. I couldn't see any reason for Heather to act like she was affected from the moon, but I didn't buy that this was legit.

Most of us began walking on, but we came across some of the sweeter creatures that were becoming dangerous now...rabbits. Courtney, Gwen and I went around, but Scott folded his arms. "I'm not gonna be taken down by a gang of bunnies." About ten seconds later, he screamed for help. "I'm being taken down by a gang of bunnies!"

"There's no time to lose!" Alejandro called, pretty much running on his hands. We followed. "Hurry up, Heather, you have the map!"

Heather let go of the alligator and followed. "Yay, running! Good work, guys, we're halfway to the finish line. This is fun!"

"Okay, this is sufficiently weird." Gwen stated.

"I know!" I exclaimed.

"Why is Heather being affected by the blue harvest moon?" Courtney wondered, voluntarily joining in on our conversation.

"Maybe she's part wolf?" Gwen suggested. All three of us burst out laughing, but Courtney quickly straightened her face, remembering that she was mad at Gwen.

Gwen gave a sigh. "Don't give up." I whispered to her. "She can't stay mad forever."

Finally, we got to a rope bridge, which Gwen refused to go over. She insisted that we had to go around, that the bridge would break.

Now, no offense to Gwen, but this wasn't a movie. The bridge wouldn't necessarily break, and as Alejandro pointed out, we all had to get to the finish line to win.

"Besides, if you don't come with us, we'll miss you SO much!" added Heather. Alejandro shuddered. He seemed more disturbed by sweet Heather than anyone else was.

"If you take that detour, you'll cost us the game!" Courtney said. She suddenly gasped. "That's your plan, isn't it? Admit it!"

"I'll see you on the other side, you know, if you'll make it!" Gwen called, already a distance away.

"Good luck!" Heather called after her. She turned to the rest of us. "Come on, guys! Nothing to be afraid of!"

"Except you." muttered Alejandro.

"Maybe someone brave should cross it first and make sure it's safe!" added Heather.

I smirked and said "I'll do it!" If Gwen was right, it would be best to cross first rather than last. Still, I crossed with no incident.

"Amateur style." Scott scoffed from the other side. "Back home, we have a special way to cross these bridges." He cleared his throat importantly, and then began screaming as he ran across the bridge.

No, really. That was the special way. Then after that, he got attacked by a beaver, which also chomped one of the strings on the bridges so everyone had to edge across and Heather nearly fell. Alejandro caught her.

"I knew you still cared!" she exclaimed. I frowned. She'd spoken in her normal voice. She had to have been faking being affected by the moon...but why? Was this something to do with Alejandro – was she trying to get him all weirded out by her? I mean, all she'd done this season so far was argue with him, so I could see that. I was sure she still felt something for him.

After everyone was across, Courtney grabbed the beaver. "Chomp this, freak!" She held it to the bridge, and sure enough, it took it out.

"Now the other team can't use the bridge!" Alejandro said appreciatively. "Brilliant plan, Courtney!"

"But if Gwen can't make it around, the bridge is no longer an option, is it?" Heather argued.

"She's right. Terrible plan, Courtney!"

"Whatever." Courtney snapped. "That's Gwen's problem."

I scowled. "If we lose, I'm voting you off, not Gwen! She went around because she thought the bridge would break. Thanks to you, it did."

We reached the finish line soon enough, but we were still missing Gwen. "I knew she'd sabotage us!" Courtney muttered furiously. But I didn't have time to say anything more, as a baby deer started advancing on her. But just as it backed her up, a dark figure jumped in front and stuck a branch in it's mouth.

It was Gwen.

"You...you saved me." Courtney said, shocked.

"You'd do the same if our positions were reversed." Gwen smiled.

Courtney pretended to agree, but it was written all over her face – no way would she do that.

The Heroes arrived just as the moon went back to being white and the deer scampered away. But Gwen and Courtney still managed to cross the finish line before the Heroes were done, and we won.

Still, Gwen sighed as she watched the Heroes go to the campfire while we were in the peanut gallery. "Wish I was on the Heroes team."

Duncan stopped at the peanut gallery. "Aw, cheer up, Gwen." He kissed her on the cheek. "There, that should do it." Then he whispered something else.

Gwen scowled and pushed him away. "Ugh, I can't do this any more! It's over!"

"What just happened?" was all Duncan could say.

"What was that?" I whispered to Gwen.

"I know I was a little harsh, but there's no thrill there any more. And he keeps asking about Courtney – he should decide who he wants. Me – or Courtney."

Scott volunteered for exile again, although Courtney protested. "Sorry, babe." he said to her. "I gotta find that invincibility statue."

The Heroes were meant to vote, but Cameron interrupted. "Wait!"

"What now?" Chris demanded.

"I volunteer for the Flush of Shame!"

"NOOOOOO!" Sierra shrieked. So...she really did think Cameron was her new Cody?

"Cameron, why?" Mike asked.

"Sorry, Mike, I'd like to help you with your, uh, problem, but I just can't take any more of...you know, this!" Cameron gestured to Sierra.

"Oh, are you allergic to long grass?" she asked. "I could get chains instead!" I shuddered.

"Well, isn't this a perfect way to introduce the surprise twist?" Chris said smugly. "Today's ejected Hero is tomorrow's new Villain!"

Yes, you heard right. Tiny Cameron was now on our team. He looked nervous as he approached us. "Uh, hi."

Gwen and I smiled at him, but we were the only ones who did. Poor kid. He wasn't in for an easy time.

**I love Cameron, really I do. Please review!**

**So, the name for Elle and Bridgette's team is...well, okay, I haven't really decided. "Surfer Chicks" was good, but because Geoff and Brody are there, it's a bit too similar. Also, Elle isn't really a surfer like Bridgette. I do want a reference to the beach in there, though, since Elle does love the beach. So...given that, could you please send in some more suggestons?**


	55. Chapter 55: Sneaky Statue

**So, let's see what happens. I mean it this time – the team name will be at the end! Thanks for all your suggestions. Thanks to Elizabeth Life Stone, shadowassaisan24, Gage the Hedgehog, link9753, and the guest reviewers for your suggestions and reviews!**

The next morning at the spa hotel, Cameron was desperately trying to fix his broken glasses. "Don't bother." Courtney advised him. "You won't be around long enough for it to matter."

I nudged Gwen. "Got anything for broken glasses?"

She nodded and approached Cameron, smiling. "Here, maybe a twist tie would help."

Cameron tried it and smiled. "It worked! Thanks!"

I approached too. "You don't need to be so nervous around here. The Villains' team isn't entirely evil." Gwen nodded with me.

Yes, the perfect time for Heather to come up and tell Cameron "You look even nerdier than before. I know it sounds impossible, but here you are doing it, so..."

"Heather, please." interjected Alejandro. "I think he pulls of a nerdy look with generous measure of dignified flair."

"It's mostly made up of evil people." Gwen and I said at the same time.

"But we're not." I added. "Just stand up for yourself, and the others will leave you alone eventually."

That morning, Chris announced that we were going on a trip to the "Fun Zone".

"What's the catch?" demanded Heather. "Is the Fun Zone just a building that's on fire?"

"Nope!" Chris said brightly.

"Is it a pit full of intestines?" Duncan asked.

"Would that be fun? You've had it kind of rough lately, so I figured – okay, the lawyers figured you deserve a treat."

I narrowed my eyes. "So what are you so happy about, if the Fun Zone isn't going to torture us?"

"Why shouldn't I be happy?" Chris said simply. "I've had plenty to watch with the last few challenges – I can stand to go without for one day."

I narrowed my eyes further. "I don't know."

"Well," Chris shrugged, "If you'd rather do something else..."

"No!" everyone said quickly, most of them glaring at me.

"Fun Zone it is!" Chris said, as Chef's boat came up with a sleep-deprived Scott. Turned out the Fun Zone was on Boney Island, and that was where the invincibility statue was hidden. Poor Scott had looked for it all night but couldn't get in there.

The Fun Zone was actually a part of Boney Island that was still contaminated. Our challenge was to collect eggs from the mutants and put them in a basket for our team. The first team to get six eggs won.

Chris only communicated with us via monitor, so we were totally unprotected.

Duncan was getting insecure. When Scott fell asleep and Chris woke him by yelling through a bullhorn, making him freak out and fall over, Duncan started laughing, and said "I find that funny because I'm not a nice person. That's why I laughed." Then he went over and helped Scott up. I actually found that more funny. This was a new side to Duncan that I'd never seen before – a guy who desperately tried to cover up his sweetheart tendencies.

Sierra tried to make Cameron team up with her, even though he'd switched teams. Gwen and I teamed up with him instead. Someone had to guard the eggs, since Chris said it was okay for the other team to steal ours. We put two in, just as Heather put one in. Right now, it was four to two in our favour, and Alejandro was guarding for us, with Sierra guarding for the Heroes.

"I need a break." Heather said. "I'll guard the basket for a while."

"As you wish." Alejandro answered smoothly, leaving. Heather glanced around, and then spoke to the three of us.

"Don't get too close. Alejandro has everyone else convinced to vote off Cameron next, which _is _tempting..."

"Um, I'm right here." Cameron interjected.

"But my vote is for Alejandro." Heather finished.

"And why should we trust you?" Cameron questioned.

Heather left, calling "Do what you want, little man. It's your funeral!"

"I thought you were gonna watch the eggs!" Gwen yelled after her.

I shrugged. "It's okay, guys. I'll guard. Not like Sierra's gonna take anything." Sierra was busy looking after some mutant creatures that hatched and counted as their second egg – a two-headed baby.

Duncan came back with a tiny egg for the Heroes. "Check it! I had to fight a crazy monster to get this egg! It was half lion, half bear, half poison!"

Chris played the clip of what really happened, and it was hilarious. Duncan was holding the egg, trying to console a three-eyed bird that was actually pretty cute. "I'm only borrowing this egg. I promise I'll bring it back." The bird began to cry, and then it made Duncan cry too.

I patted Duncan's shoulder mockingly. "Hey, you know something? I like this you better than the you last time we were on a season. This you doesn't sound like the you who cheated on your girlfriend instead of dumping her first, then gave Alejandro full permission to manipulate her when she was already fragile." I glanced around. "Okay...I just hope Courtney never sees this episode with me saying that."

Zoey and Mike won the challenge for the Heroes with a nest full of eggs, and Zoey even won an advantage for the next challenge.

At elimination that night, I decided to listen to Heather for once and vote off Alejandro. She'd been in a mood ever since the challenge, even accusing Chris of taking something that was hers, and I didn't want to cross her.

"I've tallied the votes," Chris said, "And tonight's flushee is...Alejandro!"

"HA!" Heather exclaimed.

"Oh, I do not think I'm leaving." Alejandro said calmly.

"Oh, yeah?" Heather jeered. "Really? Why is that?"

Alejandro stood up. On his feet. For the first time since last season. Then he took out the invincibility statue. "I've got diplomatic immunity." We all gasped.

"Just immunity, Alejandro." Chris corrected.

Heather jumped to her feet. "You...you...you...!" She was too furious to say anything coherent.

"Hate to interrupt such a well thought out argument," Chris said, "But the only vote that wasn't for Alejandro was for you, you, you. So _you _are getting flushed."

"NOOOOO!"

Alejandro was the only one that went to say goodbye to Heather. Mike volunteered for exile.

Gwen seemed to finally be getting somewhere with Courtney, so I left them in the girls' cabin and waited on the steps until Alejandro came back to confront him.

I stood up when I saw him. "Care to explain what actually happened at the bonfire ceremony? Where did you find the invincibility statue? Heather found it first, didn't she?"

Alejandro smiled smoothly. "That's impressive, Elle. You have most of it right. I suppose there's no point in denying that Heather did find it, but she left it somewhere during the challenge. So, technically, I found it next, and I kept it."

"And you eliminated Heather because..."

"Because of what she did to me last season."

I laughed humourlessly. "In my opinion, you deserved it. Or do I need to remind you how much you put Bridgette through, how you helped Courtney up with affection and then tore her down because you never really cared about her, how you treated Owen like crap when he didn't even know why you hated him, how you made Tyler tell about the kiss just to distract Team Amazon-"

"Stop, I understand." Alejandro interrupted me. "But this is all a game. I play strategically. I'm aware it's not the socially acceptable way to play, but socially acceptable didn't get Heather to the finale either. I wouldn't do that outside of the game. It's not something I do for fun – it's just the easiest way to get to the finale."  
I shrugged. "Whatever. Does that mean you'd apologize to Bridgette if I asked you to?"

"Would you like me to?"

That caught me off-guard. "No." I answered. "You wouldn't mean it. Look, Alejandro, I know you don't like me, and I don't like you, either, but don't screw me over like you did Heather, and I won't give you any more crap about this."

We shook hands on it, and I went into the girls' cabin, where Gwen was listening to music from her headphones and had blocked out everything else, and Courtney was lying awake, thoughtfully.

"Courtney, can I ask you something?" I said.

"What is it?" Courtney asked carefully.

"Will you ever forgive Gwen?"

Courtney gave a sigh. "It's takes a lot for me to admit this, but I think she's paid her dues for it. I want to be friends with her again, I think."

"Thing is," I said, "I know you and I haven't been on good terms, but I was thinking you, me and Gwen could all be friends. It'd be fun."

Courtney smiled slightly. "Sounds fun. Goodnight, Elle."

"Night, Court."

Gwen pulled out her earphones to say her own goodnight, and we all slept peacefully that night. At least, I did.

**Next up has one of my favourite moments in the series – one of the confessionals.**

**Now...Elle and Bridgette's team had a name that two of you voted for. Their Ridonculous Race team will henceforth be known as...the Beach Babes! **


	56. Chapter 56: Friends and Fights

**Anyone wanna guess what my favourite confessional is? Clue: It's about a contestant who left the island. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone, Gage the Hedgehog, shadowassaisan24 and the guest reviewer.**

While Courtney was becoming tolerable and I was getting along with Gwen and Cameron, the other guys weren't really much fun to be around. And Scott was kind of gross. We got mouldy toast for breakfast, and Scott actually ate it. "Mama calls this penicillin puree. Never had a cold in my life!"

"A cold shouldn't be affected by penicillin." I told him. "It's a virus. Have you ever had a bacterial illness? Or, say, _food poisoning_?"

Scott was about to reply when Alejandro came up, and he was distracted. "Well, well." he said. "Wakey wakey, Legs-A-Fakey."

"It truly is a miracle that my legs finally woke up." Alejandro answered, although we all knew he'd been able to walk long before he did. "Now they can be put to good use for our team."

"After today, there won't be any teams." Courtney told him. "There are only nine players left – we have to merge soon! And after what you did to Heather, good luck finding an ally, _Al."_

"I would prefer it if you did not call me that name." I saw Alejandro's eye twitch, which seemed to happen every time he was annoyed or trying to keep his temper at bay. I'd watched the finale some time after the show, and I'd discovered that Alejandro mentioned to Heather that he hated being called Al because his brother Jose, who beat him at everything, called him that. Cody had immediately called him Al about six times, and also noted that was one of the reasons he found Owen so irritating.

Scott stood up. "What's wrong with the name Al? My sister is named Al, short for Albertha. She's the county hog caller." He demonstrated and a pig immediately knocked him over.

Chris called us, then. Today, a boxing ring had been set up, with a wheel next to it. Chef came back with Mike, looking a bit shaken. Strangely, when Mike went over to his team again, Duncan and Zoey exchanged glances. What was up with that?

The challenge was to last two minutes in a boxing challenge. We would spin the wheel to get our opponent. We got a point for each match we won, and the winner was the team who got three points first. Oh, and for winning the last challenge for the Heroes, Zoey didn't have to take a turn, and their team got a point.

Scott went first. He had to fight Fang, except all he did was freeze there until Fang punched him out. Then when Courtney yelled at him, he only came alive to slur "I likes you, pretty lady." Then he passed out.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, you overgrown guppy!" Courtney screamed at Fang. Then she and Gwen carried the unconscious Scott back to our team. Gwen glanced over at me when Courtney actually treated her nicely, and I flashed her a grin. Yeah, Courtney was becoming...tolerable.

Sierra also lost her challenge and her pets, who she gave to Cameron to look after while she fought. "Here, take the boys, and I'm sorry, but it's just not going to work out. I'm breaking up with you!"

She had to fight her pets' mother, who sent her flying and grabbed Sierra's pet before leaving. Sierra landed on Cameron. "Forget what I said." she said. "I could never break up with you, Camody." She giggled. "I can't wait for the teams to merge. Then we'll be Team Cam-Sierra-ody!"

Poor Cam.

It was our turn again. "I'll earn us a point." Alejandro said confidently, spinning the wheel. Whatever it stopped on, though, made him gasp in horror. "No! It can't be!"

His opponent appeared in the ring, a slightly older and more handsome version of Alejandro.

"_Jose."_

So this was Alejandro's brother. No wonder they looked alike. At first, it seemed like Jose was winning. But then, he suddenly said "Your technique is almost as embarrassing as the way your girlfriend with the unattractive personality burned you on national TV!"

He started to laugh, but it was cut short as Alejandro suddenly sent him flying. "That's for calling me Al!" He punched again. "That's for always hogging the bathroom mirror, and replacing my soap with a urinal cake!" I started giggling.

"And _this," _Alejandro continued, getting ready for the final blow, "Is for calling any aspect of Heather unattractive!" Jose had lost.

"Whoa, the Villains get a point!" Chris announced. "And now we all know how Alejandro really feels about Heather!"

I remember watching that, months later, and seeing Alejandro's confessional after the fight: "_Heather, I know you're watching. Call me."_

Next up was Mike. But Cameron spoke up before he could spin. "What's the point of spinning the wheel? The game must be rigged!" What he meant was that everyone landed on their worst fears. "Sierra fights Cody Jr's mom, Scott fights Fang, Alejandro fights his big brother...the probabilities are too astronomical for this to be random!"

Due to that, Chris promised that Mike would not get his worst fear. And it was true – the wheel landed on Cameron's worst fear.

"I thought you were over spiders." Zoey said as the arachnid creature came out of the ground – a giant spider.

"That's not a spider!" Cameron answered fearfully. Sure enough, part of the costume came up to reveal...Izzy?

"Greetings, spider food!" Izzy greeted everyone happily.

Oh, yeah. Izzy had made a cameo in the last season as a giant spider. Cameron had conquered his fear of spiders during the challenge, but had admitted in one of his confessionals that he was no longer scared of spiders, but terrified of Izzy.

However, Mike sent Izzy flying in seconds, and I noticed Duncan whispering something to Zoey as they watched.

Cameron was sent up next, and failed to fight four blind mutant gophers. Chris made me go next.

"I can't think what I'd be scared of fighting." I muttered as I spun. The wheel stopped on two silhouettes, and I gasped. One silhouette had a cowboy hat, and the other had a ponytail.

I scowled at Chris. "What the fu...you can't just bring people back whenever!" But Geoff and Bridgette were already in the ring. Chris knew the way to push my buttons was to hurt those I cared about...so making me hurt those I cared about – and two people, come to that! I already knew Geoff was stronger than me, and Bridgette was about evenly matched.

I frowned. "Sorry, guys. I can't do it." I turned to Chris. "I forfeit." I said defiantly.

Chris shrugged. "Fine. It's all the same to me. No point for the Villains!"

Most of my team glared at me, except for Gwen and Cameron who both seemed to understand.

Duncan took a turn, although Chris started asking him if he was sure he wanted to do it, playing on his Hero status and his fears that he was going soft. "You might really hurt someone."

"Well, then, it sucks to be someone!" Duncan said, trying to regain his tough exterior. "Back home they call me Snake Hands."

He spun, and...ended up with the three-eyed bird he'd taken the egg from the last episode. At first, Duncan started going on about how the bird was about to go down any minute now. But finally, he stopped and gave up. "Seriously, how am I supposed to fight something so helpless and weak?"

It was our team's turn again. "I'll go!" Courtney and Gwen both volunteered. They looked at each other, giggled, and then chorused "No, seriously, I'll go."

Chris made Gwen spin, and it stopped on a silhouette of..._Courtney._

At first, the girls refused to fight, but Chris had a back-up plan. He'd found footage of Duncan and Gwen kissing on one of Sierra's blogs, and you could see fire in Courtney's dark eyes as she saw it.

"Courtney, remember, we're past this!" Gwen tried to tell her. "We're friends again!"

Courtney scowled. "I guess I'm not as over it as I thought. Sorry, Gwen, this is going to hurt you more than it hurts me." She aimed a punch at Gwen. "That's for kissing my boyfriend!"

Gwen aimed her own punch. "That's for him _not_ being your boyfriend when he kissed me!"

Duncan grinned. "They're fighting over me." he said proudly.

I gave him a shove. "Hello, Captain Obvious. But I don't think they want you back. It's more the principle."

Even when Chris called time out, neither girl stopped fighting. "I only came back on the show to make things right with you!" Gwen cried.

"I never really missed Duncan..." Courtney admitted, "But I really missed you."

Duncan's grin vanished.

The girls dropped to their knees. "So, friends?" Gwen asked.

"Totes." Courtney answered, putting her arms around Gwen. "Friends forever."

And Chris was so moved that he gave each of them a point, making our team the winners!

Before the elimination ceremony, while we moved our stuff to the spa hotel and the Heroes moved their stuff out, Gwen and Courtney made it obvious that they were the best of friends.

"Hey, guys, wait up!" I called. "You're not gonna leave me out, are you?"

The two girls turned. Gwen smiled, and then looked at Courtney. There was a pause, before Courtney smiled too, and all three of us walked to the hotel together and set up our room together, talking about random stuff. I was glad to see Gwen smiling again – she'd been so down since the beginning of the season. And Courtney was fast moving from "tolerable" to "likable".

At one point, when Gwen was outside, Courtney said "Um, Elle? I just realized something. I never said thank you last season."

"For..." I said.

"For trying to warn me about Alejandro." Courtney explained. "I'm sorry I didn't listen to you, but when he kissed Heather at the finale, it all came clear that he'd never really done anything for me that didn't involve him getting something back. And that was the reason he was doing that, wasn't he? So I was of use to him."

I nodded. "That was it. He'd already hurt Bridgette and Leshawna that way, and I knew that eventually, he'd hurt you too." I sighed. "And...Courtney? I haven't really been fair to you on this show, have I? I've never really been nice to you, and yet I'm supposed to be the 'sweetheart' on this show."

Courtney shrugged. "I'm over that. We were sixteen when we met, and I was suspicious of your motives for hanging around our team in the first season. Then when I watched the show, I realized that none of that spending time with our team was used to your strategic advantage." She smiled. "I'm past that. I'm ready to start over, if you want to be friends."

The three of us all made a pact that night – all three of us would team up during the merge.

Chris didn't merge us that night, though. But he did have a surprise. This time, we were allowed to choose which Hero took the Flush of Shame, and the Heroes got to choose who went to Boney Island.

The six of us conferred, and we all agreed on a person."

Gwen spoke for the rest of us. "We've decided,"

"Reluctantly," Cameron interjected, "Very reluctantly..."

"To eliminate..." Gwen paused, each Hero looking terrified in turn. "Sierra." she finished.

"Me?" squeaked Sierra. "But why?"

"You have a real Cody back home who needs you, for some reason." Cameron told her. "Now run, Sierra, run to him."

"You mean swim." Chris joked. "But first, Heroes, who's going to exile?"

The Heroes all said the same name without conferring. "Alejandro!"

Sierra was in tears as she waited to be flushed.

"Sorry again!" called Gwen. "Say hi to Cody for me!"

"And make more of those Gwuncan videos!" Duncan added. Gwen shot a glare at him. "What?"

"Hold your breath!" Chris called, flushing.

The last we heard was Sierra crying out "I'm coming, Cody!" as she disappeared under the water.

**I like Sierra, but did they ever ruin her character this season! It's like she forgot all the development in the later episodes and went back to being more psycho than she was at the end of WT. Please review!**


	57. Chapter 57: BFFs

**Let's keep going! Thanks for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog, StarHeart Specials and the guest reviewer.**

The next morning, Gwen woke up, saying "I just dreamed I was riding a fluffy unicorn on clouds made of marshmallows."

"What?" I exclaimed, giggling. "Gwen, is it just me, or have you gone completely anti-goth?"

"No, I understand what she means!" Courtney said. "They're REALLY soft beds."

Gwen nodded. "Yes. " Courtney and I sat down on the end of Gwen's bed, as she continued to speak. "A couple of days ago, I was ready to quit. Now that all of us are friends, I never want it to end!"

"I hope we make it to the final three together!" added Courtney.

"What about Scott?" Gwen asked her.

"He's cool and all," Courtney shrugged, "But you've gotta put friends first."

"Awww!" Gwen and I said. All three of us spoke together. "If I don't win the million bucks, I hope one of you does!"

It was all three of us. I was worried that once Gwen had achieved her goal of making friends with Courtney, she'd forget about me. But I should've known better. After my talk with Courtney the day before, she trusted me just as much as she trusted Gwen. And Gwen and I had stuck together for most of the season. So both of them treated me, as well as each other, as a BFF.

After a few hours, the intercom started blaring. "Attention, campers! Please gather around the front, right where Duncan is being all sweet."

Poor Duncan! He'd been trying to mess things up for something, and accidentally fixed things.

I got to the place, just as Chef was saying "Duncan, you fixed my gear! You're a good kid."

I burst out laughing.

Alejandro was back, and Cameron marveled at the fact that he'd spent the night on Boney Island without looking any the worse for wear. "It is all about attitude." he said airily. "Survival was easy. Also, I have a special way with animals."  
"Enough with the self-promotion, Al!" Chris yelled through a megaphone. He lowered it and said "I have a big announcement. Today, the teams are being merged!"

We all gasped.

"That's right! Now, challenges are for individual wins only, and everyone is at risk of getting the not-so-royal flush!"

At that moment, Chris' phone rang. "I have to take this. It's my stylist." he said, yelling into the phone. "Yeah, how come my socks don't match my shirt?"

I looked at Gwen and Courtney. "Work together until it's just the three of us?" The girls nodded. The three of us would make it to the finals, no matter what!

Our first challenge was a regatta around the island. There were boats waiting at the dock, and we had to grab them and race the perimeter of the island. Whoever got back to the dock first won. Boats were first come, first serve.

Gwen, Courtney and I all ran to get a boat together. Duncan followed us. "Hey, can I be part of your alliance?"

"Why?" Gwen asked.

"I second that, why?" I asked.

"I need allies and I can protect you from people like Mike."

"Like he's a threat." Courtney scoffed.

"I'm telling you, he's dangerous!" Duncan insisted. "I knew him back in juvie when his name was Mal."

Nothing Duncan was saying made any sense. All three of us started giggling. Besides, Mike was no threat. Now if he'd said Alejandro, that would've made sense, although I personally got the feeling he'd stopped playing girls since he was too interested in Heather to think about it. The other big threats were only threatening as winners, not in causing harm.

Alejandro made it to the dock first, but the three of us were close behind, and grabbed the next speedboat.

The first obstacle we encountered was a bunch of coconuts dropped on us from above. Courtney nearly fell out of the boat, and Gwen and I had to haul her back in.

"Thanks, guys." Courtney smiled. "I almost got my hair wet."

"I would never let that happen." Gwen assured her. "Your hair is fantastic."

"No, your hair is." Courtney told her. "What's your secret?"

"I double condition."

I coughed loudly behind them. "Both of you have fantastic hair, now let's get moving!"

Both girls snapped out of it. "Sorry, Elle." Courtney said. "And by the way, I personally like your hair, too. I'm serious. I kind of wish I was blonde."

I laughed. "Do you know that in the second season, Heather tried to steal your hair? Speaks volumes about the fact that everyone on this boat has fantastic hair!"

But this time, Chef dropped a stick of dynamite on our engine. No, seriously. We came to a stop for a while, until Gwen and I grabbed paddles and started rowing. Courtney tried to get the engine started again.

Finally, it started, and we were speeding.

Ahead of us, Alejandro's boat stopped just before he finished. We passed Cameron and Scott, then Zoey and Mike (Duncan was nowhere to be seen).

"What's Alejandro doing?" Gwen wondered.

"I think his engine died." I grinned.

"Guess he'll have to Alejand-row, row, row his boat!" Courtney joked. All three of us giggled.

But Alejandro still won. He got ahead just before we sped past in second place.

It was only when Chris asked where Duncan was that we heard the explosion. See, we'd passed the place Chris was staying in, his "cottage" (although Courtney kept insisting it was a mansion, which it was), and Duncan had gotten off his boat, and to prove he was still the bad-boy of the island, he blew it up.

"That's not bad." I whispered to the girls. "Chris had it coming."

Still, I felt a little sorry for Chris. He was completely wooden as he proclaimed Alejandro the winner of the challenge and told him he was allowed to take one person to the spa hotel.

All of us looked pleadingly at him. "As much as I would love to bring you all," he said, "I cannot play favourites and break all of your hearts."

We all groaned.

Soon, it was time for the campfire ceremony, yet again. No one had to go to Boney Island as a reward for making it to the merge. However, Chris had a little surprise in store for Duncan.

"Aw, Chris, you shouldn't have!" Duncan said.

A hand landed on his shoulder. "You're under arrest for the destruction of a private cottage." Two policemen were here.

"It was NOT a...uggghh!" Courtney scowled.

"Way to go, bad boy!" Gwen said sarcastically. "I hope looking cool is worth getting locked up again!"

"It is!" Duncan answered. "I'm gonna rule juvie!"

But Duncan had forgotten something. He wasn't a kid any more, and Chris was powerful. He wasn't going to juvie – this time, he was going to jail, and that scared him tons.

"Will you guys miss him?" I whispered to his two ex-girlfriends.

The two of them pretended to think about it. "Hmmm...nah." they chorused. We all laughed.

The votes were...strange. I'm glad that Duncan had been taken away, because otherwise, the tampered votes would've taken away...Cameron! Yes. Chris told us everyone had voted the same way.

"How could it be unanimous?" Cameron cried. "I didn't vote for myself!"

"I didn't vote for him either!" Zoey added. I hadn't, either. I'd voted for Zoey. Yeah, she was really nice, but I couldn't vote for Alejandro, and she was the next biggest threat – nothing personal.

But Cameron was still in the game. I spent the night chatting with Gwen and Courtney in the girls' cabin. Zoey was sharing the room with us, but she didn't say much.

"So...did someone tamper with the votes?" I asked.

"It makes no sense." she said. "We found the votes under Mike's mattress, and Cameron keeps saying he can't trust anyone now. I don't know..."

I shrugged. "I didn't vote for Cam. There was no reason to. Has he angered anyone lately?"

Zoey nodded. "Yeah, I guess. He used Scott as bait so Fang would pull our raft in the challenge. Do you think Scott might've tampered with the votes?"

"Maybe." I said. "Anyway, goodnight, everyone." I said to all the girls in our cabin.

**Whew, glad that's over! I've decided exactly when Elle's going, BUT, should she be in the finale?**

**Also, I'd like to take this time to ask you to read some of my other stories. Here they are:**

**Centre Of Attention – AU involving Duncan, Courtney, Gwen, Alejandro and Scott as a street gang who needs big money, and to do it, they kidnap a younger girl and hold her for ransom.**

**Being On Reality TV - "Simpsons" crossover in Total Drama archive. My "Simpsons" OC, Stephanie, the eldest Simpson child, is now sixteen and applies for Total Drama Island, planning to spend her whole summer in Canada...not the wisest idea when she is forced to stay there for Total Drama Action. Follows her adventures as one of the Killer Bass, Killer Grips and later on, on Team Chris Is Really Really Really Really Hot. Not the same as this fic, I promise!**

**Best Sleepover Ever – One-shot. Katie and Sadie are at their weekly sleepover when an innocent game of Truth Or Dare ends in a kiss...yuri.**


	58. Chapter 58: Who Is Mal?

**ight, so...Ezekiel's cameo, isn't it? Thanks for reviewing, StarHeart Specials, Gage the Hedgehog, Elizabeth Life Stone, shadowassaisan24 and the guest reviewer. And...well...I like the friendship, too, but chart or no chart, Courtney does want to be friends outside the game.**

The next day, I was just walking around the campsite after eating as much breakfast as I could take, when I heard someone saying my name, and I looked around to see Mike and Cameron outside the spa hotel, talking. It was Mike who had spoken, but I wasn't sure what he was saying. I heard him say Gwen's name afterwards, but I hadn't heard what he was talking about.

"Gwen and Elle?" Cameron said in answer. "I thought we were friends! But then, they were on the Villains' team..." He looked up at Mike. "Thanks, pal. Sorry I said I couldn't trust you. Obviously, I can."

What had Mike been saying? It sounded like some kind of thing with backstabbing Cameron...maybe to do with the votes last night. But why would Mike tell Cameron that Gwen and I would have tampered with the votes...unless he did it. But then, why would he want Cameron off the show? None of his personalities seemed to find Cameron annoying, at least, onscreen, and Mike and Cameron, along with Zoey, were so close that I sometimes referred to them as the Friendship Trio.

I tuned back in, as Mike spoke again. "Good, but you're still in danger. Right now, it's three to five – you, me and Zoey versus everyone else. We need to lure at least one of them into our gang."

"But how?" Cameron asked.

"We'll think of something."

Had Mike been talking about everyone else, too? Courtney, Scott, Alejandro? Why would he want to turn Cameron against everyone except for himself and Zoey? It didn't make any sense.

That wasn't the only thing going on. When Chef called us into a room full of cameras in the spa hotel, Gwen and I were at the front. Courtney purposely hung back so she was standing next to Scott. Yeah, we all knew she liked him, but there was obviously more to it, because 24 hours ago, she would've stuck with Gwen and I. It didn't help that Cameron was constantly giving Gwen and I suspicious glares. I would have to ask him what Mike had said back there.

Chef turned on one of the screens, and on it was Chris, wearing a party hat. Behind him was a table full of party supplies and the number 100 on it.

"Welcome to episode one hundred of Total Drama!" the image of Chris exclaimed. "To celebrate, I have anextra-special one hundredth episode challenge! I hope no one is allergic to rhinoceroses, fire, or poison..."

Sure, he seemed happy, but I spotted something that was out of place.

"Look out!" most of us said at the same time.

"Right next to you!" I cried out. "It's-"

Chris didn't even bother to look. "Please, don't interrupt." he said. "I'm..." Suddenly, he was captured in a sack and the camera went blank. As if that wasn't enough, Chef choked on his coffee and spilled it all over the controls, turning all the other cameras off, too.

"...Ezekiel. It's Ezekiel." I finished. I hadn't properly seen the homeschooled kid since he'd taken the money in World Tour (well, better him than Alejandro, right). I'd viewed him living in the mines last season (and trying unsuccessfully to capture Anne Maria's heart), but I'd hoped that he'd be able to go home, get medical care and be restored to his old self, instead of staying feral. I'd liked the old Ezekiel. But now he'd run off and kidnapped Chris.

"New challenge!" bellowed Chef. "Find Chris!"

"You want us to hunt for Zeke?" Gwen said incredulously. "No way! He's psycho crazy!"

"Hey, if no one saves Chris, there ain't no show!" Chef pointed out. "Which means no winner, and no million dollars!"

Alejandro spoke up for the rest of us. "We accept this challenge, but only if the one who finds Chris gets immunity for the next vote."

"And permanent residence in the spa hotel for the rest of the competition!" added Courtney.  
"_And _they get to send one person to Boney Island." Cameron finished, still shooting us death glares, especially Gwen and I.

"Deal! Just find Chris!"

Zoey suggested that Zeke took Chris to the mines, since he was there last time. We'd all have to find different ways of getting in, though, since the old way in was sealed up from the mine challenge last season (the one that held the toxic waste that affected Dakota. At least Chef gave us torches.

Naturally, Gwen and I were expecting to team up with Courtney again, but we couldn't. "Sorry," Scott told us, putting an arm around Courtney's waist, "But it's our one-hour anniversary and four's a crowd. Bye."

Courtney giggled. "Sorry." she said quickly before following.

I looked at Gwen. "Should we find another ally?" I asked.

"More allies means a better chance." she pointed out, calling to the only other competitor that was alone. "Alejandro?"

"No, thank you." Alejandro answered. "Only one person can win this challenge, and that person is going to be me."

"Good luck being the only one alone!" I yelled after him. Gwen and I followed the other three instead, although Cameron seemed not only angry now, but confused.

"I heard Mike and Cameron talking this morning." I whispered to Gwen. "I don't know what they were talking about, but Mike was saying something about how everyone except him and Zoey was against Cameron and that they had to lure at least one person over to their side. Cameron thinks we're against him or something."

We found holes leading underground that led to the mines, but Gwen immediately started to freak out. "No, I can't go down a hole. I have a phobia about being buried alive. No way am I-" Suddenly, the ground broke apart, creating another hole, directly below Gwen. She screamed as she fell.

"Gwen!" cried Zoey, jumping in after her, just as the ground below me broke too, and I fell, screaming the whole way.

I don't remember much about walking through those dark tunnels. I had a torch, but everywhere looked the same. Once I thought I heard a scream, but I wasn't sure whose scream it was. Then after a while, something sneaked up on me (oh yeah, feral Zeke) and within seconds, I was trapped in a cage with Zoey, Courtney and Scott. I didn't pay attention to my surroundings, because there was enough drama inside the cage without Chris dangling over a tub of acid, ready to fall to his death whenever the rope was cut.

"Guys, are you okay?" I asked them. Zoey and Courtney both nodded.

"Know what's not okay?" Scott said. He addressed Courtney. "That _you _kissed Cameron!"

I gasped. "Wait a minute, back up. You guys were dating? But Courtney wouldn't kiss Cameron – she knows how much it hurts to be cheated on."

"Well, she did!" Scott insisted. "And on our two-hour anniversary! That's just cold."

"I'm telling you, he kissed me!" Courtney snapped.

"That's not what I saw."

Courtney pulled a piece of string out of her pocket. "Well, if you don't believe me, I don't want your dumb shoelace ring!"

"Good, because having one loose sneaker was making me CRAZY!"

I had to fight not to laugh. Their argument was getting ridiculous. But Zoey seemed more shaken, since she was sitting in a corner, knees pulled up to her chest.

Alejandro was caught next. The minute he was in there, there was some kind of brown goop thrown on us.

"Please tell me this is fudge!" whimpered Zoey.

Scott tried it. "Yep, it's fudge."

"Thank goodness!" exclaimed Courtney.

I wiped some of it off my shirt sleeve and tried it. "Hm, not too bad. Better than breakfast."

Next to be caught was Mike. "Are you okay?" Zoey asked, once he was dumped in the cage.

"I guess it's all up to Gwen and Cameron now." Courtney remarked.

"Just Gwen, I suspect." Alejandro said casually. "The last time I saw Cameron will likely be the last time I saw Cameron."

"What did you do to him?" Zoey demanded.

"Nothing! I tried to help him, but he would not accept!"

"So you just left him hanging there?" Mike said. "Not cool!" Alejandro looked at him suspiciously.

I sidled up to the competitor. "What really happened?"

"Cameron was hanging from a vine." Alejandro answered. "I offered to pull him out, but he refused to trust that I wouldn't let go, saying he only trusted Mike and Zoey. But I didn't mention that Cameron was hanging before..."

I narrowed my eyes. "First, you should've tried harder to make Cameron accept...unless you were planning to let go of him. Second, there's something weird going on with Mike."

Alejandro gave a nod, but didn't reply.

Chef arrived around the same time as Gwen...and Cameron, who was perfectly fine. Unfortunately, while Gwen rescued Chris, Cameron injured himself distracting Zeke.

Gwen was given the win, and got permanent residence in the spa hotel and chose to send Alejandro to Boney Island. As far as elimination went, Chris said no vote was required, since Cameron had to be flushed since he was so injured. The poor guy was put back into the plastic bubble he'd spent the best part of sixteen years in – he'd lived in it up until the fourth season. He was still covered in bandages.

"I'll miss you, Cam." Zoey told him.

"I'll miss you too." Cameron managed, his voice muffled.

"You get better, okay?" Gwen said.

"Thanks, Gwen.:

"Cam, you know whatever you were told about me, it wasn't true." I said. Gwen had told me that Cameron had said something about Mike telling him something about Gwen, but after she saved his life, he trusted her completely. "I'm just as innocent as Gwen. Get well, okay? I'll miss you."

Finally, Mike came up, and Cameron said something I didn't quite catch.

No one else heard Mike's reply, but I did, since I hadn't managed to get that far away, and Mike's voice was so different that it made me stop and stare. His voice had become deep and sinister. "Oh, Mike's gone." he told Cameron softly. "I'm _Mal. _And I let you fall. So long, sucker."

The words gave me chills, and I ran back to the bonfire quickly.

That night, I missed Alejandro in spite of myself. What I'd heard from Mike – no, he'd called himself Mal – was frightening, and he seemed to be the only one who suspected anything. I wanted to see if he knew anything more. I would have expressed my views to Courtney, but she was angsting over Scott dumping her, and it left me no room to talk to her about this Mal thing. I couldn't even tell Zoey, because she was trying to comfort Courtney, but I'd have to talk to her sometime – she was Mike's girlfriend, and she deserved to know. And there was no way I'd go to the boys' cabin to talk to Scott.

I'd just have to sleep and hope the next day would bring better things.

**So now Elle knows there's something up. What comes next? Please review!**


	59. Chapter 59: Know Your Villain

**I'm glad I'm getting through this episode. Thanks for reviewing, shadowassaisan24, Gage the Hedgehog, and the guest reviewer.**

With Gwen out of the way, Courtney continued to whine about Scott dumping her when, according to her, she didn't kiss Cameron, he kissed her. Zoey and I tried to calm her down, but she was barely listening.

"Time out!" Zoey raised her voice, finally, stopping Courtney. "Sorry." She suggested that she could just talk to Scott. "And hey, on the bright side, kissed by two guys in one day? You're on fire!"

I giggled. "True."

Courtney smiled. "Thanks, guys. Do me a favour – don't mention this to Gwen. I haven't been exactly easy on her about the whole kissing thing."

We both agreed not to tell, just as there was a knock on the window for Zoey. I lay on my cabin bed, texting DJ: _Know I shouldn't really be telling you this until the episode airs, but Cameron just left. There's something weird going on with Mike – I'm kind of scared. I overheard him talking to Cameron just before he left, and he said that Mike was gone and he was Mal. I think Alejandro knows something about it...have any confessionals said anything. Miss you, xxx_

I soon got a text back: _Just got to episode 7. Duncan told Zoey that Mike was in juvie with him and he was called Mal back then, and caused trouble for the fun of it. Confessionals show that Mike is trapped in his mind and Mal is in control. Miss you too, lots of love..._

Courtney went out to talk to Scott, and soon, Chris called us to the forest, where he noted that the last one there would have to do push-ups.

"Nice of you to show up, I was almost getting bored." Chris said, deadpan as the last contestants arrived. "Glad you could join us, Alejandro. You know the deal – last one here equals push-ups there."

"Of course I'm going to be the last one – I was exiled on Boney Island!" Alejandro pointed out.

"You mean..." Chris pulled out a bullhorn. "'I was exiled on Boney Island, SIR!'"

Alejandro rolled his eyes, but did all fifty push-ups, making it look easy.

Chris said the challenge was based on Chef's boot camp from the first season, making me shiver. I remembered the holding the canoe, eating leftover garbage, writing an essay until three in the morning (where I'd been eliminated from the challenge when I fell asleep)...and I'd rewatched the show and seen the obstacle course and of course, I remembered how Gwen had won by surviving the longest while hanging from a tree upside down.

The challenge was a harder version of the obstacle course – Chris called it the "Obsta-kill Course". We'd cross a ton of tyres, then climb up a wall with a rope. Then there were monkey bars, called snapping bars. It was over a pond, so I resolved to climb over the bars instead of swing from them. Snapping turtles were probably in there. There was a short run where I just knew Chef was going to be waiting with some kind of gun – paintball, spicy spaghetti...something.

"Piece of cake." Scott scoffed. Chris immediately gave us heavy packs to carry the whole time, with the threat of a penalty if we ditched them.

Zoey whispered to Gwen and I that Mike had told her that Alejandro had let Cameron fall in the last challenge.

"That's harsh, even by Alejandro's standards." Gwen said.

"The way he tells it, he offered to help and only left when Cameron refused." I said. "Zoey, I heard from one of my friends that when Duncan was here, he told you about Mike's alternate personality in juvie, the one called Mal – are you sure it was Mike talking to you there?"

Zoey frowned. "Yes, I am. I know Mike well enough to know when I'm talking to him or a different personality – I mean, I'm pretty sure he was Mal earlier, but Mike's back in control now. Anyway," she continued, "Mike and I are planning to vote off Alejandro as payback."

"Count me in." Gwen and I said together. Sure, I wasn't sure if Zoey was right, but I'd just have to talk to Alejandro before eliminations to decide. And if Gwen, Zoey and Mike all voted against Alejandro, they just needed one more vote to kick him off.

"Awesome." Zoey smiled. "Now we just have to survive this challenge. At least it's not underground, right?" We both laughed with her, knowing she was referring to Gwen's claustrophobia.

I noticed Mike – or was it Mal? - saying something to Alejandro. I crept closer, luckily facing Alejandro, so he was the only one who saw me, but it didn't matter.

Once I was in earshot, I could hear that the guy was speaking in the same voice as he'd used with Cameron. Yes, that had to be Mal. "Who's gonna believe you," he was saying, "The most manipulative player in Total Drama history?"

"True, I'm not known for being trustworthy." Alejandro said, still calm. "That is why I have procured a DVD full of footage of you at your shiftiest." He held Mal by the front of his shirt. "Your hours here are numbered, pal. Or should I say..._Mal_?"

Mal simply reached up and a sickening crack was heard as he twisted Alejandro's wrist. I winced.

"Wait!" Alejandro exclaimed. "My people have a saying: _Burrosmuertos no hablan_!" I recognized it as Spanish, and suddenly remembered something else – wasn't Burromuerto Alejandro's surname?"

"Dead donkeys don't talk?" Mal translated. In a flash, I realized what Alejandro's surname meant, and I had to run so Mal wouldn't hear me laughing and realize I had heard everything they'd been saying.

Finally, it was time for the race to start. I was lucky enough to dodge most of the booby traps on the tyres.

"MY FOOT IS TOUCHING MY FACE!" I heard Scott yell behind me as I passed.

Just as Alejandro tried to talk to Gwen and she didn't listen, I began passing. I stopped to quickly say "Everyone's going to vote you off – but you've got one vote on your side – two more and you're safe."

Zoey and Mal were ahead of me, but I reached the next one. Since Zoey was on the white rope, I went for the thick one next to her, with Gwen right behind me on the same one.

"Hey, are either of you allergic to dog hair?" Zoey asked.

"No." Gwen and I said together.

Zoey could tell we thought it was a weird question, so she explained "It's just that your rope is..."

Gwen and I sniffed it. Yes, it was fur.

"I know, right?" Zoey laughed. "So gross!" We laughed with her.

Then we heard another voice from below – Courtney. "You three better not be talking about me kissing Scott and Cameron!"

Gwen gasped. "You kissed Cameron?"

I kept climbing. "Talk about it later!" I called down, although I heard Scott saying something else.

I was right about the snapping bars, although I fell a bit behind at the time. Gwen, Zoey and Mal went across from below, while Alejandro walked across the top on his hands only while I had to crawl. He pretty much just stretched over me, before suddenly grabbing onto Mal, but both guys, plus Gwen and Zoey still got ahead of me.

As it turned out, the last part of the obstacle course was actually dodging leeches from Chef. Well, what Chris said was the last part. I saw Alejandro get hit while he was trying to talk to Zoey. I had to hide behind a rock and ended up falling behind. However, I did get to where Courtney and Gwen were also ducking, since Courtney had to explain things to Gwen. She insisted again that Cameron kissed her.

"Why would he do that?" Gwen asked.

"Maybe because he thinks I'm pretty?" Courtney said, scowling.

"Gwen doesn't mean he wouldn't," I negotiated, "It's just the only time you've ever spoken to Cameron, you told him he wouldn't be in the game long enough to need his glasses fixed."

Zoey was in the lead by this time, but I saw an opening. Chef was shooting at her, so I was ready to slip past when Scott ran up. "Courtney, I need to talk to you. Did you kiss Alejandro?"

"Okay, I'm out of here." Gwen responded, but I hung back to hear this. Where did Scott get that idea?

"Yes, but it was years ago!" Courtney said. "You and I weren't going out, so it's okay!" I made my run for it, wondering when that kiss happened. Maybe it was when I was off the show and Chris didn't play it – after all, that wouldn't be the first time that kind of kiss happened.

As it turned out, there was actually a reason for those packs. The finish line was across a chasm, and our packs carried what we needed on the zipline across. Zoey crossed the chasm first, with Alejandro nearly winning, but Mal went with Zoey, then jumped onto Alejandro. As I crossed, right behind Zoey, I heard Mal say "Now tell me where the DVD is!"

"Never!" replied Alejandro. But it turned out his equipment wasn't enough to hold both of them. Mal wasn't exactly brawny, but with Alejandro already having serious heavy muscle, Mal's weight probably just pushed it over the edge.

By the time I tried to get Gwen and Courtney to vote off Mal, they'd already decided their votes, but in a crazy attempt, I voted for Mal anyway.

Then came the bonfire ceremony. "Congratulations, campers." Chris said. "This was the fastest voting process in Total Drama history. The votes are unanimous, except for two, one of which being a particularly artistic entry..." He held up the picture of Mike with devil horns and a goatee drawn. I looked over at Alejandro and mouthed "_Yours?"_

"I wish I had thought of doing something like that." Scott remarked.

"But," Chris continued, "Everyone else wants Alejandro to surf the porcelain wave machine."

Gwen claimed she didn't want to go to the spa hotel, even though she was allowed in. Chris had been staying there since Duncan blew up his residence, and Gwen couldn't take another night of him complaining about "roughing it". Chris sent her to Boney Island instead, while Zoey was in the spa hotel, and got to take one person with her.

"Mike!" she decided. "He's the only reason I won!"

"Awww, really?" Mal said, hugging her. "You're the best!" Alejandro scowled.

We all watched the manipulative lesser of two evils (huh, it used to be Heather being the lesser with him, now he's the lesser with Mal) being flushed. "This show just got one hundred percent less beautiful!" he called out. "But I'm not the real villain! A greater evil is lurking!"

As Chris pushed the button, Alejandro called out one last thing. "The truth is in the art! It's in the art!"

When I trudged back to the cabins that night, I chatted to Courtney for awhile. She was in a mood again, but I got her to snap out of it by talking strategy to her. "Let's choose who to vote out next. I mean, you, me and Gwen are going to the final three, right?"

Courtney nodded. "The three of us, right to the end. I don't trust Zoey – she's way too nice to be truly nice. I say we lose her next."

"Unless she wins immunity again." I said. "In that case, it's Mike...or should I say Mal? I heard him calling himself that when he said goodbye to Cameron. Besides that, he broke Alejandro's wrist today and I personally think it was him that left Cameron to fall. Come to think of it, from what I heard him talking about, I'd bet he told Cameron to kiss you to drive Scott away."

Courtney brushed off my concerns. "Whatever. Okay, Zoey first, and then Mike." I nodded.

Oh, if only I'd known what would happen the next day.

**We all know what's coming up, and I know how hated the next episode is. But it has to happen.**


	60. Chapter 60: I Scream At Courtney

**Continuing! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, shadowassaisan24, D3n14I, Gage the Hedgehog, Td4ever and the guest reviewer. Sorry, guys, but if you want a version of All-Stars with Courtney's redeemed self untarnished, I'd check out my story "A Cutie And Her Claws". There is no chart in that version.**

We all went to meet Gwen when she got back. "Hey, Gwen." Zoey greeted her. "How was your night on Boney Island?"

"Not bad, actually." Gwen answered. "A woolly beaver tried to eat me, so I climbed a tree to the top and slept in the canopy. Fell asleep looking at the stars."

"Wow." Zoey said.

"What a nightmare!" Courtney exclaimed, putting an arm around Gwen's shoulders. She went on about how Gwen was smart and self-reliant, so that's how she survived.

"Well, welcome back, Gwen." Zoey said as everyone except Gwen, Courtney and I left.

"_Welcome back, Gwen." _Courtney mimicked.

"What?" Gwen and I said together.

"Oh, nothing!" Courtney said quickly. "Just noticing that cutthroat vibe Zoey has about her. So two-faced. We should shun her."

"Oh, come off it, Courtney." I said. "Zoey's not like that. Isn't it enough to vote her off next?" Although I was still going to vote for Mal if I could.

Gwen didn't seem so sure about it either. "Are you still mad at me for all the kissing I did?" Courtney asked her. "Because like I said before, Scott was an accident, and Cameron kissed me."

"I'm not mad at you!" Gwen told her. "I just hope your head is still in the game."

"Don't worry, my head is totally in the game!"

"Mine too." I added.

Gwen's face softened. "So you guys still wanna go all the way to the finals with me?"

"Gwen, I promise," Courtney said, "It's the three of us, right to the end."

"Until the semi-finals, of course." I added. "But no hard feelings about whoever gets voted off there, right?" My friends nodded.

When Chris called us, Scott hung back to compliment Courtney and tell her if she needed any help, to just ask him, and then started flexing. Gwen and I pretended to gag.

"I know, right?" Courtney whispered to us, and we couldn't help giggling, although I felt a bit sorry for the guy.

Finally, we caught up to Mal and Zoey. "Hope you guys got lots of sleep," Scott said, "Cause I'm feeling strong as an ox."

"Don't you mean, strong as a rat?" Mal said in an innocent voice. Scott looked at him, confused. "Oh, you haven't seen Courtney's chart!"

"What?" Scott asked as Courtney gasped. "What chart?"

"This one!" Mal pulled out a chart with little pictures on it. A sketch of Mike was at the top with a question mark. Below him was Zoey, then me, then Gwen, then Scott with a rat tail.

"Great plan, by the way," Mal continued, "Not exactly how I wanted to go down, but still..."

Gwen and I stared at Courtney. "You put Scott ahead of both of us?" I said incredulously. Gwen glared at her. "I can't believe I ever wanted to make friends with you." I added. "I thought you'd changed, but you haven't!" I walked off with Gwen.

"You gave me a _tail?_" Scott said, glaring at her.

"Wait!" Courtney begged as we all walked away.

"Oh, please." Gwen said. "Even _you _can't talk your way out of this one."

"Focus." I muttered to Gwen. "Don't even think about her. Compete – and no matter the threats, Courtney's going home tonight." I still wanted Mal to go, but I knew that realistically, everyone was going to vote off Courtney. I was pretty hurt, too. I was sure Courtney actually wanted to be my friend, but she'd broken my trust, and as a result, she'd returned to enemy status, although as far as Total Drama went, she was still ranked below Heather and Alejandro, and now I'd put Mal on the list (he'd done nothing to me, but I'd seen what he was up to and was scared he might), she was way below him

I made a confessional. "I can't believe it! I thought I could trust her! I thought, if nothing else, Courtney would be truthful if not honest all the time. And then she does this? I. Hate. That. Girl."

Our challenge, Chris told us, was to make a sundae for a couple of interns who had eaten nothing in the last week. Mal, of course, burst out laughing when he told us that. Zoey gave him a concerned look.

But to make the sundae, we had to go everywhere on the island. First, around the top, we'd get our ice cream, but we'd have to brave the ice that had been put there by the ice machine. Then we'd go to the swamp for the cherry. Nuts we could find in the old cafeteria, and finally, we'd find chocolate sauce around a mutant fire flower. The winner would be the one whose sundae the interns finished first.

I won't bore you with the details of getting everything, but I'll give you a quick rundown. Courtney begged Gwen and I to take her back as a friend and not to vote for her. We ignored her, but worked together for the challenge.

"Next week, every camper for themselves, but for now we work together?" I said. Gwen nodded grimly. We were leading at first, but at the time we got the cherries, Mal caught up. Then we bumped into Courtney after we got the nuts.

"I should never have made that chart!" Courtney said pleadingly. "I still want us to be a team, I still want us to be friends. Please don't vote me off...vote for Zoey!"

I folded my arms. "First, even if you hadn't made that chart, I was never going to buy your bullshit about Zoey not being as nice as she seems – you're just scared that she's better at this than you. Second, my vote is already decided."

Gwen was more easily persuaded. She offered to vote for Scott, and to try to convince Zoey to do the same, but only if Courtney voted for herself.

Then, we all got across the finish line quickly enough, but Chris had changed the rules so that we had to eat our own sundaes. And a bird had puked all over Courtney's.

I was pretty sensitive to brain freezes, so I had to eat cautiously. The first person to finish was Zoey, so she won. Again. But Chris also said we wouldn't get any more food until we finished our sundaes. That was okay with everyone except Courtney.

So I tried voting for Mal that night again. And I can only assume that Gwen voted for Scott. But I have a feeling that Mal knew I knew who he was, and that he said something to Scott, because Chris announced that there were two votes each for...Courtney and I!

I scowled. "Why would anyone vote for me?" The girls all looked surprised, too. As far as they knew, I didn't have any enemies on the show. But I knew the truth when Mal met my gaze. His dark eyes said it all.

Soon, Courtney and I were both floating in the toilet bowl.

"Goodbye, everyone!" I called out. "Gwen, Zoey, I'll be rooting for you two!"

Chris pressed the button, and both Courtney and I screamed as the water washed over us.

**Sorry for the shortness of this chapter. Now Elle's gone! Let's see where she went.**

**Please, PLEASE don't stop reading. The cruelty left in this story will never reach such heights again, I swear.**


	61. Chapter 61: Finale Of Love

**Let's go! Thanks for reviewing, D3n14I, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Gage the Hedgehog, StarHeart Specials (thanks, but I heard about them on Deviantart and so I looked them up...and I'm going to ignore them since they kind of mess up things...like a lot of characters should've died, and Courtney's sundae should've melted into the ocean by that time), and the guest reviewer (don't want to spoil anything, but the Beach Babes have an alliance).**

I washed up on the dock of what seemed to be Playa Des Losers, Courtney by my side. Wait a second, wasn't that the place Chris had commandeered as his "cottage", which Duncan blew up?

As it turned out, Chris' mansion was actually just a replica of the Playa, albeit even better. The real one was still standing. I should've known.

Everyone who'd been flushed before was there. Cameron seemed to have healed considerably, but he was still in his bubble. Sierra had since stopped stalking him, and was blogging most of the day, when she wasn't using her new Smartphone to talk to Cody. It seemed like talking to him was keeping her sane. Lindsay chilled by the pool most of the time, when she wasn't getting her nails or something done. Lightning and Jo did a ton of working out, Jo slightly more. Sam seemed to be happy playing on some game consoles other than the broken one. The only one missing was Duncan, who, I assumed, was in prison.

Heather and Alejandro were the biggest surprise. The first time I saw them, they were in one of their rooms with the door open, making out quietly. But it wasn't too hard to hear the sounds that they did omit.

"Hey, you two, close the door next time!" I called out.

Heather broke away and looked up, flushing scarlet. "You close it, okay?" she said and went back to what she was doing. I obediently did so, but I couldn't help smiling. It was about time those two stopped arguing and started dating.

It was a few days before Chris sent us the next episode and the next two losers. The final four had to go and find some kind of booty – Zoey had to find a yeti, Gwen was meant to look for an untouched piece of one of Chris' pictures of himself, Scott had to find a diamond, and Mal...I can't remember at all. There was no vote. Basically, the person who came back without their loot, or if everyone got it, last, would be flushed automatically. Then the winner could pick the next person to be flushed.

Zoey won the challenge, again, but the more interesting part of the episode involved Zoey finding the DVD of Mal that Alejandro had hidden in the spa hotel. She'd been in the hotel again, but this time, Chris didn't let her take anyone else. But when she found the DVD, she watched it, and when Mal made a slip-up by saying something about being the same Mike who gave her a bracelet last season. She didn't say anything to him, but her confessional said it all:

"_Mike gave me a necklace, Mal, not a bracelet!"_

Chris declared Gwen the loser, due to the way she'd restored the painting of him that she found. He claimed it was "defacing" his picture and flushed her. Then it was time for Zoey to choose who else would go.

"I promised to have a friendship finale," she said, "But things have seriously changed since then. But I'm a girl of my word, so...sorry, Scott."

"You're making a mistake!" Scott protested. "Mike's a total scammer! You don't know what you're in for!"

"Thanks, Scott, but I know exactly what I'm up against," Zoey said, "And _who_."

I went down to the dock to meet the two flushed. Gwen arrived first, and I helped her up. "Dumb challenge, wasn't it?" I said sympathetically. "I just hope Zoey will win this thing."

Soon enough, Scott washed up, and I offered a friendly smile. "Hi, Scott." I said. "Go on up to the house. I'm expecting you were here last season and remember where everything is?"

Gwen and I went up too. "Oh, by the way, you should've seen it when I first saw Heather here! I mean, I thought it was going to happen, but I couldn't believe she'd given in!"

"What?" Gwen asked, but I think my smile gave it away. "Oh my...are you saying that she finally started dating A-"

"Yes!" I said. "It's hilarious! I mean, the first thing I found them doing when I got here was making out. I don't know. They're not acting like themselves, either. Heather's gone full on sweet devoted girlfriend, and I don't think Alejandro's bothered to switch on the fake charm with her even once, because he seems much more genuine around her than he ever used to be."

Anyway, the finale had been drawing closer and closer, and it was finally time. We were all required to go to the dock that morning, before going back to the island, where we met...

"Owen?" half of us said in unison.

"Hey, guys." Owen grinned at us, although I noticed a little bit of guilt in his eyes. "Chris asked for me to come back for this episode...not allowed to explain, sorry."

Within an hour, I could understand why Owen wasn't allowed to explain. Chris gave him tons of canned beans, and got him to use his gasses to fill thirteen balloons. Each flushed contestant was put in one balloon, and Mal and Zoey would begin the challenge by trying to shoot us down. Whoever they shot down would be their helpers for the challenge.

I could hear voices outside the balloon, and see shadows. I recognized both the finalists, and I saw something shoot towards another balloon and heard Gwen and Cameron (who was still in his bubble) call out.

I heard Chris' voice clearly. "Zoey picked up Cameron and Gwen! Mike, you might wanna start trying."

"It's _Mal." _corrected the dark voice I'd heard Mal use when he wasn't pretending to be Mike. So he'd stopped? I guess he knew Zoey was on to him.

Suddenly, fresh air filled my lungs, and I heard two more familiar screams as I, too, fell to the ground. My balloon had popped, and by the looks of it, the other two people there were...Alejandro and Heather! But who had popped my balloon?

Chris announced that time was up, and called to the intern to get the others.

Suddenly, a gust of wind came and the other balloons began floating away (I'll be honest, I was terrified then, but later on, I read a blog written by Sierra who wrote that the balloons popped long before they could suffocate and that all of them had ended up on the mainland, where they were recognized from the show and managed to get home safely). I could have dwelled on it longer, if Chris hadn't decided to immediately distract from it with the challenge.

"Heather and Alejandro, you will be helping Mal, slash Mike. Gwen, Elle and Cameron, you're on Team Zoey. But you five are here as helpers only. Meaning, you can't win."

There was a pause.

"Meaning no money." Chris said. He paused again. "Zero money, plenty of pain." Pause. Chris picked up a bullhorn and yelled into it "HEATHER, CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

"Yes, Chris, I hear you." snapped Heather. Her face softened. "Alejandro and I are fine with the rules."

Chris gasped. "Oh no! Are you two...DATING?"

I burst out laughing. While the new couple hadn't spent much time with the rest of us at the Playa, they'd always been less than a metre away from each other.

We all had a chance to make a confessional. Mal and Zoey each made one, followed by Gwen. Alejandro and Heather's confessional together was cut short, because we could all hear them being sickeningly sweet, and Chris pounded on the door of the outhouse. "OUT! Get out! That is the most disgusting thing that has ever happened in there!"

I rolled my eyes and teased "Chris, it could've been a lot worse. At least they were still _dressed._" I didn't add that it was obvious that they had kept composed and cool, so they hadn't gone as far as making out, either.

Finally, Chris showed us the challenge. First, Mal and Zoey would cross three moats, and then dodge the "Mad King" (Chef), who would shoot with his pasta bazooka. Below him was a sword with a stone. Whoever pulled it out first would be the ultimate TD All-Star.

If Chef's Mad King persona reminded me of TDA and the crazy movie challenges, the three moats reminded me of the other three seasons. The first moat was toxic waste, green and bubbling. That was just like the fourth season, and if anyone fell in, they were in danger of turning into something like Dakota did. The second moat was lava, reminding me painfully of the third season. I remembered Heather accidentally throwing the wrong sacrifice into the volcano, and the eruption. And the third moat had water (and Fang) in it, reminding me of the basics of the first season, back when Heather was the worst of the competitors and most of us were friends. I missed that.

"This challenge is crazy!" Gwen exclaimed.

"Let's try not to hurt Mal!" Zoey said. "Mike's still in there. Right, Cameron?"

"I don't think so, Zoey." Cameron said from inside the bubble. "And it's possible that Mike was always Mal and Mike was just one personality. Either way, Mike's gone."

I agreed with him, personally. Even if Mike was still in there, I knew he wouldn't be able to get out. The "Mike" trigger was Zoey being in danger. If Mike wasn't strong enough to become himself during the multiple times Zoey was put in harm's way, then the only one left was Mal.

Zoey's face hardened. "Well, if Mal is really Mal, let's go out, crush him, and win this thing!"

The three of us cheered and high-fived, except when trying to high-five Cameron, Zoey accidentally sent him rolling over to the other side.

Mal kicked him back. "Keep your garbage on your side." A shiver went down my spine at his chilling voice.

Then, it was time to go. "Good luck, Zoey!" Mal said mockingly. "You're gonna need it!" I couldn't help smiling, since Alejandro and Heather seemed to be paying no attention to the game at all, only focused on each other. Mal had a huge disadvantage, helpers-wise.

Zoey pulled out the necklace Mike had given her last season. "Goodbye, Mike, wherever you are." she whispered. Then she dropped the necklace and covered it.

Cameron got us across the first moat. He suggested that we go across on his plastic bubble. It disintegrated once we were across, but at least we got Cameron himself across safely. As we did so, I saw Mal apparently trying to get across by floating on Heather, until Alejandro found a stick and suggested that Mal pole vault.

"Zoey is in the lead!" Chris announced through his bullhorn. "Zoey...winning!"

When Mal got across, he nearly fell, and Zoey had concern for him – she was having a hard time accepting that Mike was gone.

"Remember that, or he'll introduce you to a pool of lava!" Gwen reminded her.

"Right, okay, I know that." Zoey said, sounding more like she was convincing herself. "I do!"

Meanwhile, Mal didn't bother to get his helpers onto the other side of the first moat.

We put the ladder up to the lava moat across for Zoey to walk over, but as we did so, I turned to hear Cameron screaming. Mal had pushed him down to the lower level.

"Jerk!" Gwen cried reaching to attack Mal, but he caught her fist and pushed her down, too.

"Gwen!" I called out, and this time, I surveyed Mal before attacking. I thought about it, and lunged forward in a sudden movement to push him into the lava (hey, Alejandro survived lava, it's not like it would kill Mal if Mike was still in there), but he was ready for me. He grabbed hold of both my wrists, and held me high before hurling me down, and I landed on Gwen.

Luckily, I was unhurt apart from a ton of bruises, but Gwen had a twisted ankle, so Cameron and I had to support her as we went to Mal's ladder to get back up.

"What's wrong with you?" asked Heather as she and Alejandro got across the first moat.  
"I think I sprained my ankle." Gwen answered.

"A sad tale, but we are not on the same team," Alejandro said, "So we must leave you." I rolled my eyes.

As we climbed up, I suddenly heard Zoey screaming from the third moat, and Mal...was it Mal...punching Fang out of the water.

As I got closer, I heard Zoey say "Mike...is it really you? Like, _really _really?"

"From now on," said the guy in Mike's voice, "I'm all Mike, all the time." He paused and then asked, "Hey, where's the necklace I gave you?" That sealed it for me – Mal had thought it was a bracelet. He had been lying when he said Mike was gone – he'd finally managed to take control again.

Cameron, Gwen and I were ready to climb up to the third moat, but we stopped to watch as Zoey pulled Mike into what would be their first televised kiss. Cameron, Gwen and I high-fived each other.

On one side of the third moat, we could see Alejandro and Heather. "Love is a fine, fine thing." Alejandro commented.

Chris flew up on his jet packs, furious. "That's IT! This is the finale! It's about pain and betrayal, and pain! Not hugs and kissing! PAIN!"

There was a pause, before the couple started kissing, again. Mike and Zoey were doing the same. Gwen shrugged and kissed Cam on the cheek.

Me? I looked at the camera and blew a kiss. "That's for you, DJ. Miss you tons."

"New rules!" shouted Chris. "Anyone who gets the sword out of the stone wins the million dollars!"

"Anyone?" Alejandro instantly dropped Heather and went for it, but before he could take two steps, he fell over.

"Oh no you don't!" Heather had grabbed his ankle.

I almost ran up the ladder. I still wanted Zoey to win this. Neither of those two deserved it.

"I guess it's game on!" Zoey said, breaking the kiss with Mike.

"Yeah." Mike agreed. "I better go get my money!"

Zoey laughed as they went back to the game. "You wish!"

While Mike was able to give Fang's loose tooth (which had come out after he punched Fang out of the water) to Alejandro (causing Fang to chase him), Gwen and I took care of Heather, knocking her down with a bamboo stick.

"Oops!" Gwen grinned. "My stick slipped, Old Heather."

"Way to stick it to her, New Heather." I teased her.

Cameron and I began helping Gwen up the ladder to the top, just as I heard Chris announcing "Some impressive maneuvers from both Mike and Zoey, and unimpressive shooting from Chef."

"I'll say!" Mike called out. "You couldn't hit the blind side of a-" He had to dodge. We got to the top just as we heard Zoey cheering. She'd done it – she'd won!

"Way to go, Zoey." Gwen smiled.

"You deserve it." added Cameron.

"Congrats!" I said.

But the happy ending. As it turned out, the moat had been built with a particular type of machine that was way too big to use on an island of this size.

Within five minutes, Camp Wawanakwa was underwater, while Mike, Zoey, Gwen, Cameron and I floated by on the roof of the outhouse. I didn't see the others.

"We should do this again sometime." Mike suggested casually. Our answer was united.

"NO!"

**One more chapter to go, and then this part of the story is over. Wow...I can't believe it!**


	62. Chapter 62: Party!

**Fine, here we go...but this won't be the end! Thank yous for reviews go to Gage the Hedgehog, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, LemmyKoopaling, (I've made some changes to eliminations, but nothing that big, but I do have a plot point for the Beach Babes involving the Ice Dancers in the second half of the season...) BC2016 (I was going to, but no one liked that idea...see my ANs earlier to see what I'm doing for RR), and the guest reviewer (New Zealand, but I choose winners for my own reasons – my DVDs have Owen, Beth, Heather, Cameron, Zoey and Shawn, but I decided to use Alejandro's ending for WT).**

When we finally got to the mainland, I had honestly never seen anything better. But Chris had to ruin the prospect of heading home.

"By the way, I have to get started on the next season next week with some earlier reject applications, but after that, look out for an email. I'm planning the first Total Drama reunion – with every cast member from every season! And before you ask, it's in your contract. It'll be after the next season, since it'll only be a couple weeks long."

Seriously? I had to come back and see everyone? Don't get me wrong, I loved meeting people, and to be honest, I wanted to see everyone again, and it would be cool to meet the other cast members. But to be honest, I didn't know if I could see any more of Chris' smug face without punching it. Or at the very least, shooting a leech at it. If only I could give him what all the universally hated contestants got – Heather had her head shaved, then Courtney pushed Justin off a building. Alejandro was trampled and covered in lava, Scott was mauled by Fang, and Mal seemed to just...disappear – or at least, so Mike claimed. How I wished Chris would just disappear!

As it happened, I was right to be wary of the reunion. At home, I watched the new season. Every episode aired exactly a week after it happened, and I could see why Chris had rejected the applicants. There was a redneck pageant queen, an insane LARPer who actually thought he was a real wizard, a Disney princess, an evil genius who wasn't evil or a genius, another genius who turned out to be very evil, and several others. The most normal people were an athletic girl, a germophobe, a zombie conspiracy nut, and a tall Australian girl...and possibly the younger of the two twins that competed. Oh, and there was a particularly annoying guy who wanted to steal Chris' job, and some others.

It was exactly a month after All-Stars when the reunion was set, and okay, I'll admit, it was nice to see that everyone from our season was alive and well.

On the other hand, the whole of the new cast was there – even the insanely evil genius who came close to letting the island explode. Yeah, Scarlett didn't look like an evil genius with her nerdy glasses and red hair done up in a bun, but I'd seen it.

Max, on the other hand, looked and talked like a villain, but I knew from the show that he was completely harmless without Scarlett helping him every step of the way. She'd used him as a cover.

The twins showed up together. I couldn't tell which was which by sight, since they got eliminated early – I just remembered that the older one was mean and called Amy, and the younger one was nice, and everyone called her Samey, even though she'd said in the first episode that her real name was Sammy.

After a couple of hours, with everyone tense in case the reunion was a trick, everyone relaxed and it finally began turning into a party. And I, for one, was glad it was all over. I'd done so many things on TV, but to be honest, while the challenges were killer, the people I met were worth it. Yeah, I could have done without Courtney backstabbing everyone last season, Heather manipulating everyone she could find from the start, Alejandro instantly eliminating those closest to me, and Mal trying to kill everyone, but they were outweighed by the people I did like. Geoff and Bridgette's relationship was still so strong that I was inclined to think Bridge would be my sister-in-law within a few more years. Although Leshawna lived about a day's drive away, we still kept in touch. DJ actually lived only an hour away from me, so our own relationship was surviving and pretty much on even keel.

To be honest, it was nice to be outside of a competitive setting with some of the contestants I hadn't liked. Some of them acted completely different. Courtney, still wanting to be friends, came up to me and apologized about the chart. "I'm sorry, really! If I had known that you would've hated me for it...I just so badly wanted to win." She was more relaxed outside the game, and I thought about forgiving her.

Finally, I smiled at her. "Okay, Courtney. But only outside the game. And if you betray me again – no chance. If we're ever in the game again, we stay out of each other's way, agreed?"

We shook on it.

Heather was her usual mean self, and I couldn't tell if Alejandro's friendliness to everyone else was genuine or not now that the game was over, but at one point, I got up enough courage to talk to Scarlett, and to my surprise, when I asked her about it, she calmly explained her gameplay, carefully avoiding what led to her elimination. She acted how she had for most of the show, pleasant, a bit shy, and extremely intelligent.

"So..." I said at the end, "You said you were evil at the end. Does that mean you are?"

Scarlett didn't answer. "I don't want to discuss it." she said simply.

I tried to talk to just about everyone, even those I didn't like. I managed to find out which twin was which (Amy had a mole on her face, Sammy didn't), I saw Anne Maria staring at Mike with a wistful look (she'd been in love with one of his personalities), and of course, I got to talk to just about everyone I'd competed with, from Beth to Zoey.

For now, things really were over. And as I reflected, I realized that I didn't regret signing up for the show. I'd faced my fear of blood tests, built my own bicycle, trekked through the Amazon jungle, taken a tightrope across Niagara Falls with a guy and another girl, survived a blue harvest moon with a team of sneaky backstabbers, teamed up with a friend and enemy to boat around the island, and...well...I'd lived through everything. Best of all, I'd met people that I wouldn't have missed meeting for anything. In fact, DJ was coming over to my apartment for the night (although we were both too tired by the end of the night to do any more than make out).

That was what I thought, anyway. But while I was done with Total Drama, reality TV wasn't done with me.

**You know what's next for Elle!**


	63. Chapter 63: One Last Chance

**No Chris, no ROTI contestants, but there's still some interaction to be had with a new team!**

**Thank you for your reviews, Elizabeth Ice Fire Heart, Gage the Hedgehog, BC2016, and the guest reviewers. To answer some questions...the Surfer Dudes' title is the reason I didn't call Elle and Bridgette the Surfer Chicks, in spite of Bridgette's label being the "Surfer Girl". Besides, Elle's into parties and beach parties are her favourite, and so...yeah. I don't want to add any more teams, but to even it up, some teams will be leaving earlier or later than they did in canon. Some teams will be more prominent than others, although be warned, I will have a lot of focus on favourites, like the Sisters, Goths, Fashion Bloggers (although in retrospect, I should've found a way to keep them...but I'd still miss the Daters if they'd been the last to the carpet).**

About a week after the reunion, I was Skyping Geoff. Well, okay, he called me.

"Hey." I answered on my iPad.

"Hey, sis." Geoff answered, his face coming into view on the screen. "What's up?"

"Um, you called me." I reminded him. "I should be the one asking that."

"Uh-huh. Well..." Geoff said. "You know how I'm not going to college until next semester?"

I frowned. "Yeah..." (All-Stars took place just before I finished school, and I only got back in enough time to take my exams and graduate, and I was planning to go to college straight off, while Geoff had already taken a gap year, being ten months older than me).

"Well..." Geoff said, "Did you get the email about the new reality show, you know, like Total Drama but with a different host and context?"

I thought about it. Yeah, the producers had sent me a message about it. It was called the Ridonculous Race, and it was basically a race around the world in 19 teams of two. "Yeah...it sounded cool, I guess."

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Geoff said. "So I was going to ask if you wanted to sign up, but then I decided not to, because I was sure you'd say no, but then-"

"You haven't signed up both of us and are just telling me now, right?" I asked, panicking.

"Chill, sis, I wouldn't do that!" Geoff laughed. "Nah, I asked Brody if he wanted to pair up with me."

"Oh." I relaxed. Brody was one of Geoff's friends since kindergarten. He was actually in my grade, quite a bit younger, but he and Geoff had been close for years. I mean, I was friends with Brody too – I even ended up being a student math tutor for him one year – but I was much closer to my other friends.

"So..._are_ you going to sign up?" Geoff asked.

I paused. "Why do you ask? I've been defying death on four seasons of reality TV already. Why would I go on another show?"

"No reason." Geoff said innocently. "Just...well, Bridgette was planning to go to Australia for the year, but it hasn't worked out, and she hasn't got anything else planned. She got the message about the show, but since we both can't imagine that we could concentrate if we worked together, I said I'd ask you-"

"Tell her I'm in." I said. I may have been happy to finish Total Drama, but I never really got to talk to Bridgette after the show ended and I moved to my own place. It would be a great chance.

"Great!" Geoff grinned. He turned from the camera. "Hey, Bridge, she said yes!"

My blonde surfer friend appeared in the frame. "Hey, Elle." she smiled. "So...guess it'll be game on for us, huh?"

"Just like old times." I chuckled. "Except this time, we'll both win!"

Geoff laughed. "Just you wait. You two are going down!"

"As if!" Bridgette and I chorused, laughing with him.

I spent the last few days before it was time to leave getting everything ready. I spent my last day before the show with DJ.

"I'm really going to miss you." I murmured. "Maybe I should've asked you to partner up with me. But I'm guessing what your answer would be."

DJ shivered. "Nuh-uh. I'm never going on another reality show again. Not after the last one." He leant in to kiss me. "I'll miss you too, Elle. Good luck, and survive, okay?"

"I promise, when I get home, I'll have five hundred grand to spend on our next date." I grinned. "Well, maybe two-fifty. I kind of made a deal with Geoff that his team would get half the money, and Bridgette and I would get the other half."

All of the teams were picked up on a bus to take them to the starting line at a historic train station. Of course, Bridgette and I got picked up at the same place as Geoff and Brody, and they even took the seat across from us. As I said, we'd already decided that if either of us won, we'd split the million into quarters, so at times, we resolved to help each other out – but I was still determined to win. Actually winning would make my two-hundred and fifty grand that much sweeter, knowing I'd truly earned it.

"No romantic stuff with anyone on the other teams!" I teased Bridgette. "We can't afford to lose again."

Bridgette laughed. "I learned my lesson after what happened on TDA. Besides, that was nearly three years ago – Geoff and I don't do that all the time."

"Oh, really?" I teased. They'd gained a reputation with the press for being the reality couple who would make out anywhere, anytime. Or everywhere, all the time.

Of course, we got to do a quick little opening piece in a backdrop which would be taken to each new place as a confessional booth. Huh, after the outhouse, makeup trailer and plane bathroom, we could take it.

Bridgette and I were labelled as the "Beach Babes". Not exactly the most prestigious title, but better than some of the others. I mean, at least it wasn't stating the obvious or anything.

"Geoff and I met Bridgette on Total Drama," I told the crew, "All of us just...well, clicked. And after they started dating, well...we were already friends, but now we actually _had _to be."

"We're both so excited about this race." Bridgette continued. "After all the crazy stuff we've already experienced, we know that this show won't be anything we can't handle."

"And it's a chance to meet some new people." I added. "Although, to be honest, the last time we met new people in an old cast, it was a disaster." I didn't say that last bit loud enough for the cameras to pick up on it, though.

We weren't the only Total Drama contestants. A few seats back, we heard a familiar loud laugh and turned to see...

"I can't believe it! Owen and Noah!" We'd seen the duo competing on other reality shows after their eliminations in World Tour, but we hadn't expected to see them here. Not if they were competing in another show that the Total Drama producers were working with.

And even further back was a Pahkitew Island contestant – Leonard, the wizard LARPer, who had brought a partner – a plump girl wearing a Viking helmet with long plaits.

After waving to the people we already knew, I looked over to the people behind us – a girl with wavy blonde hair and a guy who looked just like a younger version of Trent.

"Hey!" I greeted them. "I'm Elle."

The two of them smiled. "I'm Carrie." the girl said.

"I'm Devin." the guy said.

"So," I smiled, "How come you guys decided to do this race?"

By the time the ride was over, I'd learned that Carrie and Devin were a "best friend" team, and that they'd known each other since preschool. I'd also introduced them to Bridgette (who was so similar to Carrie it was unreal.)

Finally, the bus arrived at the building where Don, the new host, would meet us. The minute we walked in, we heard him calling "Right this way, teams! Over here!"  
It was time to hear the rules. Basically, each of us would get to a tip box, also known as the Don Box, which would tell us where to go next, and/or what challenge to complete next. Each location would end at a Chill Zone, where there would be what Don referred to as the Carpet of Completion. Each episode, the last team to set foot on the Carpet was in danger of being cut from the competition. The team who got to the last Chill Zone first won.

I looked around at everyone competing. Most of them were around our age, some a little older or younger. The youngest seemed to be a blonde boy with his dad who was about thirteen or fourteen. The oldest was a pair of seniors with an athletic look about them, despite their age.

Finally, it was time to run, and get to the first Don Box. The Father-Son team got there first, but Geoff and Brody got the first tip, followed by a guy and girl around our age in light purple.

There was a tower we had to race to, where we'd get our next tip. Bridgette and I lost some time, but about half the teams were behind us as we ran.

"There's the tower!" we heard the youngest kid call out.

"And here comes the competition!" added the guy in light purple, as he and his partner gracefully pranced past.

We got to the Don Box just after a pair of sickly-looking twins. "Either-Or?" I frowned.

"Stairs or Scares." Bridgette read. "_Either take the stairs to the top, or take the elevator and then get the scare of a lifetime on the skywalk."_

"Scares?"

"That'll be faster."

We would've gone, but just as we were racing to the elevator, Geoff and Brody were running back to the stairs.

"Someone pushed all the buttons on the elevator." Geoff told us quietly, not stopping. Bridgette and I went for the stairs, and sure enough, although both of us were puffed out. The boys passed us easily.

Next to pass us was the graceful purple couple, who had huge smiles on their two girls dressed in police outfits passed us. The bigger one was carrying the skinnier one.

When we got to the top, some of the "scare" teams were finished – Carrie and Devin being the first – but most of them weren't. Next, we needed to take a zipline down to the airport – two planes would take six teams and the other would take seven. We were going to Morocco (well, the World Tour hadn't gone there – maybe it would be fun).

Bridgette and I were second down, this time, landing in a pile as the graceful couple waved to non-existent people. "Thank you! We love you!" called out the girl. "_Merci!"_

Beside them was Don, who asked "Who are you waving to? There's no one here."

"Our fans!" chorused the team.

So we booked ourselves on the first flight, along with them, Owen and Noah, Carrie and Devin, the Father-Son team, the African-American couple, and the police girls. I soon learned that the purple couple were labelled the "Ice Dancers" and their names were Jacques and Josee. Both of them had French-Canadian accents. Owen and Noah were the "Reality TV Pros" and Carrie and Devin, in spite of having competition for the title, were the "Best Friends". The Father-Son team were both called Dwayne, but it was easier to just call the kid "Junior". The African-American couple were called Ryan and Stephanie, and they were labelled the "Daters". The police girls were actually cadets, and that was their label - "Police Cadets". They only gave us our last names – the thin African-American girl was called Sanders, and the muscular one who was carrying her earlier was MacArthur. Most of them seemed pretty friendly.

Well, I wasn't sure about the Ice Dancers. They were perfectly friendly, but I wasn't sure. The way Josee smiled was really unsettling.

"You guys have won gold in almost every competition?" I said, impressed. "Wow! How long have you been doing that?"

"We've been partners since I was six years old." Josee said proudly. "That's why we're sure we can win this competition."

I grinned. "Well, good luck to you. But I should warn you, me and Bridge are in it to win it just as much as you are."

The Reality TV Pros actually hadn't spoken to us yet, but when I tapped Owen on the shoulder, he turned and immediately, his face lit up. "Hey, Elle!" He pulled me into one of his bone crushing hugs.

"Hey, threat to the million." I teased. I grinned at Noah. "On another reality show, huh? Looking forward to the death-defying challenges?"

Noah shrugged. "You're the one that was on Total Drama for four seasons. I just want the five hundred grand cut."

The Daters were more interested in each other than anyone else, but they both smiled politely and introduced themselves when I tried talking to them.

Finally, it was time to fly, and I collapsed into a seat beside Bridgette. "They seem nice." I remarked.

"Meaning 'we should form an alliance with someone'?" Bridgette teased.

"Meaning someone on one of the other planes is going to be trouble." I replied. "Remember, this is probably going to be the last reality show we do. We may not be able to vote people out this time, but there's no way I'm letting either of us come last, especially not by the hand of someone like Heather!"

**Oh, Elle...you've been talking to someone like Heather. How ironic. I hope you liked this chapter!**


	64. Chapter 64: Unknown Threat

**Right. Second episode. Finally. The first episode bores me. Now we get into the good stuff. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart (DJ will be back at the end), Gage the Hedgehog, and the guest reviewer (Oh, Elle will catch on when they start getting serious).**

The heat in Morocco was sweltering. Just wanna put that out there. Okay? Got that? Good. Now...well, the next Don Box was at the airport.

This time, Bridgette and I were the last on our flight, but hey, seventh wasn't bad. The challenge was an "All In" - we needed to take a taxi to a spice kiosk and pick five spices.

"_Ideally cumin, cinnamon, paprika, saffron and ginger._" I looked at Bridgette. "Know how to pick out any of those? I know what cinnamon and paprika look like, but the others...no. And I'm allergic to cumin."

"I don't know that much about spices, to be honest." Bridgette confessed. "I hardly ever eat spiced food."

But we tried our best.

We got to the kiosk fifth. "These spices aren't labelled!" we heard MacArthur complaining. "Why aren't they labelled?"

"It's this one!" Carrie exclaimed on one side. "This is cinnamon, this is cinnamon!" I peered at the spice she was pointing at.

"She's right." I nodded. "And here's paprika!"

Stephanie was indecisive. "Yes...no...yes...no...SCOOP IT!" she growled at the man behind the counter. I felt sorry for him. Stephanie had seemed nice, and pretty relaxed while on the flight, but her outburst even seemed to scare Ryan.

After we got the spices, we had to take a camel to a restaurant in the desert. I eyed the load of camels critically. "Good thing we're both light."

The Cadets' camel was further ahead. Just behind us, Jacques was standing on his camel, with Josee held aloft in one hand. Show-offs. Okay, well, when I'd talked to them, they seemed nice, but pretty arrogant.

The Don Box was in front of the restaurant. The next challenge was a "Botch or Watch", meaning only one of us did the challenge. We gave the spices to the Chef, and he served us the spices in Moroccan stew which one of us would eat. Once we were done, we would run to the Chill Zone.

I looked at Bridgette. "I'm allergic to cumin." We weren't sure about the saffron, but Bridgette had identified cumin and ginger, while I found cinnamon (although it was hard to miss with Carrie calling out) and paprika. She'd have to eat the stew.

"I just hope we chose the right spices." she said worriedly. Then she frowned. "Is that stew vegetarian?"

We didn't have time to check. Sanders, Devin and Josee already had theirs. Luckily, the stew was mostly liquid, so we had no idea if there was meat in it or not. Bridgette ate slowly but steadily and I didn't rush her. We saw MacArthur practically forcing Sanders to go faster, but the poor girl looked ill by the time she finished.

We placed fifth at the Chill Zone, just ahead of the Daters and behind the two men in their sixties. Geoff and Brody showed up after the Daters.

"Girl power!" I teased them. "You two are _so _going down."

All the same, my brother and teammate disappeared that night, probably finding somewhere to make out. I wasn't bothered, since I was trying to gauge who I should be friends with. But right then, as each team arrived, I tried to get everyone's names. The Best Friends, Police Cadets and Ice Dancers had been ahead of us, but I knew all their names.

The older guys turned out to be labelled the "Tennis Rivals", and were called Gerry and Pete. They seemed nice, but really, not a team to hang out with. They were typical oldies and a bit sarcastic. There was no way I could connect with them.

Two girls in glasses were labelled the "Geniuses". One of them was called Mary, and the other was Ellody, who reminded me strongly of Courtney. She wasn't particularly bossy or uptight, but they looked similar and had the exact same voice.

Then there were two guys labelled as "Rockers". The one with long blonde hair and a bandanna was called Rock, and his quiet overweight partner was called Spud.

Then there were a guy and girl called Tom and Jen who ran a fashion blog together, and as such were labelled the "Fashion Bloggers". I made sure to admire their style.

Two Asian-Canadian girls around our age were the "Sisters". Emma was serious and didn't really say much, but Kitty, who was younger, greeted us cheerfully and introduced both herself and her sister. I instantly liked her.

When they got to the Chill Zone with only seven other teams behind them, Emma looked really worried and snapped at Kitty "You have to start doing more!"

"I would _love _to do more!" Kitty said with a slight frown. "Please!"

"I'll tell you when you can do more." Emma told her. "Okay? I will tell you."

The two sickly-looking twins were known as the "Adversity Twins", and were called Jay and Mickey. The only way to tell them apart was the helmet Mickey wore.

After that was Taylor and Kelly, a Mother-Daughter team. Taylor was a spoilt little brat who reminded me of Heather. Kelly, her mom, was friendly, but I got the feeling she was a pushover.

Two people labelled as the "Goths" were really hard to talk to. Once I asked their names, the girl of the team just said "I'm Crimson. This is Ennui." and that was the end of the conversation. They made it clear they didn't want to talk to me or anyone else.

The next team was labelled the "Stepbrothers" - two boys called Chet and Lorenzo who were either fighting, or pretending the other didn't exist.

The next people to arrive were two girls labelled as the "Vegans" - Laurie and Miles. They were both really nice people, but to be honest, they got on better with Bridgette than they did with me. The Father-Son team arrived just after them.

I didn't get to know Leonard and his friend Tammy, though. As they reached the Chill Zone – last –, Don frowned at them. "The Ridonculous Race is about skill. It's about determination. It's _not _about magic. You're done."

"Time-reversal spell!" cried Tammy, throwing up a handful of confetti.

"Security!"

That night, Bridgette and I talked a little bit about strategy. We'd already formed an unofficial alliance with Geoff and Brody – basically we'd help each other out if we saw the other team was in trouble and our team wasn't.

But after that, we fell to talking about the other teams. "So, seventeen others left." I mused. "What did you think?"

Bridgette gave a shrug. "They all seem nice, right now. At this point, it's probably too early to tell. The ones to watch out for aren't always easy to pick out."

I hesitated, each team running through my mind. "At this point, I think we should watch out for Stephanie – you know, the African-American dater girl?" I said. "Ryan seems all right, but the way Stephanie was yelling at the spices vendor was a little too psychotic to be normal. I think most of the other teams to watch out for are just frontrunners, so they probably won't mess with anyone else."

**Still being naive, Elle...come on, wake up!**


	65. Chapter 65:Linds' Kind of Parisian Visit

**Right, let's keep moving! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart and Gage the Hedgehog (no, this is Elle's last reality show). Another thanks to Alex t. So you know, there are some changes to canon later in the series. At least three teams leave in different episodes, for various reasons (ie: This season dragged a couple of plotlines on for too long). Also, since you're still reading, I would recommend you read "Bailey In Exile", a retelling of "All-Stars" with a girl who Mal tortured in juvie. There are some canon eliminations (Lindsay stays longer, and Gwen is out earlier – also Duncan's storyline is completely different so he doesn't get put in jail), but I made several changes to the main plotlines (like calming Sierra down and letting Gwen be one of the Heroes). Also, Zoey is portrayed as more seeing what she wants to see rather than just not knowing what's going on.**

The next day, we all had to take two-person scooters to the airport.

The Best Friends got to take the tip, since they were first to the Chill Zone yesterday. Devin looked at the tip. "Oh, wow! Looks like we're going to Paris!"

Huh, funny – I just hoped we weren't going to the Louvre like last time. I'd had to switch teams during the fashion-designing challenge when Lindsay lost, and I had to leave DJ on his own as what was left of Team Victory.

Once the Police Cadets, Ice Dancers and Tennis Rivals got their tips, Bridgette and I looked at our tip. It said to get our next one at the Eiffel Tower.

Bridgette drove the scooter, which was okay. If it was me, I probably would've been more cautious, but she was going FAST. I mean, we didn't catch up to the first three teams, but we passed the Tennis Rivals and made it on the first flight out, while half the teams had to wait for the second flight.

"What time is it in Paris?" I wondered, checking the in-flight entertainment for answers. "When we land, it'll be...two am? Seriously? Why do we always land in Paris at night?"

"You went to Paris on the World Tour, right?" Bridgette said. "I remember you switched teams that episode."

I scowled. "Don't remind me. You could cut the tension on that team with a guillotine – most of the team didn't trust each other, and those that showed it went..." I drew a finger across my throat. "It was only a matter of time before I got kicked off for being honest." Not that I was bitter about that or anything. After All-Stars, it was easy to see that anyone we'd had to face before was about as harmful as a daisy compared to Mal. Therefore, it made it so much easier to forgive some of the things other competitors had done for the sake of winning. At least they hadn't done it just for the enjoyment of it.

The minute the flight landed, everyone ran for a taxi. "Eiffel Tower, please!" Bridgette said breathlessly as we jumped into the first empty one we found in the taxi bay.

Don was waiting at the box, where our tip said it was another "Botch or Watch". It was my turn to take on a challenge...draw a caricature of Bridgette. When a French artist approved of it, they'd give us the next tip.

Already, Brody was flexing while Geoff drew, Carrie's pencil was moving quickly as she glanced at Devin every few seconds, Josee posed effortlessly, Ellody kept her eyes on Mary as she drew, and Sanders was posing as if she was pointing a gun.

I started drawing, starting with a circle, but leaving a section out for the ponytail. I wasn't that good at drawing, but I was determined to get this right (I started wishing I could channel Gwen's talent – she was awesome at drawing).

Meanwhile, Geoff was the first to finish and get it approved. "Dude, you drew me awesome!" I heard Brody say.

I carefully drew Bridgette, still in her hoodie and shorts, but in the picture, she was surfing. I gave it to the artist, and froze...

Thumbs up and a travel tip.

Bridgette glanced at the pad. "Why do you think you're not good at drawing?"

By that time, Carrie's picture of Devin had been rejected (according to Devin, it was too realistic), and Kitty was drawing in between talking, first asking Emma if she was dating anyone, and talking about a new haircut she was thinking of getting.

Noah showed his picture to the artist before me, and they burst out laughing. I peeked over their shoulder to see a picture of Owen about to swallow the Eiffel Tower.

But anyway, the travel tip...we had to go into the catacombs, and find our way through the maze of tunnels to wheels of cheese, where the travel tips were.

We soon came to two tunnels. "I'll check down this one, and you go down that one." Bridgette suggested. "Meet back here in five minutes if we don't find anything. If we find the cheese or come to another fork -"

"We need a signal that's not going to sound like everyone else." I said. "The guys will definitely do a cockerel call. They've had that signal for like, ten years."

We settled on a jungle cat roar and set off, but I only came to a dead end. Luckily, I heard a sound from the other tunnel, and ran back to find Bridgette in front of two more tunnels.

"My tunnel was a dead end." I told her. We didn't need to confer which tunnels to go down, this time.

I faintly heard screams from who sounded like the twins, but it didn't matter. We reached the cheeses after about an hour of wandering. And as it turned out, we had to use the cheese as a boat and paddle to...

the Louvre. Oh yeah, that's exactly where I wanted to go.

This time, we finished eighth. We were just behind the Fashion Bloggers and ahead of the Daters.

"Who won?" I asked.

"We did!" It was MacArthur who had spoken. She and Sanders were standing on the other side of the Chill Zone looking very pleased, their cheese wheel abandoned.

"Second last challenge and first this challenge?" Bridgette whispered. "Wow."

I shrugged. "Okay, so Sanders was pretty good with the stew and MacArthur can draw. And she's pretty athletic. That doesn't mean they'll be good at all the challenges."

The Ice Dancers were also standing next to the Police Cadets, still with huge smiles. I went up to them and said in my sweetest tone "Um, are you two really happy, or do you just smile all the time."

"We're national starring athletes." Jacques pointed out.

"So we never know when the cameras will be on us." Josee explained. "We have to be prepared."

I couldn't help being amused by that, but I held back a chuckle. "You know, you two look nice without having to beam all the time. I've seen a few of the other teams giving you weird looks."

"Let them stare." Josee shrugged. "They're probably just jealous that we're so talented."

I had enough sense not to question her ego after that, but carried on making pleasant small talk. They were obviously tough confident competitors, and since they'd been in the top three twice, they and the Cadets would most likely be valuable allies and/or dangerous opponents. I needed to get to know at least one team to see if I could trust them enough to offer an alliance, and I pegged the smiley ones to be easier to persuade. They were a bit goofy, and spent all their time either beaming, or waving to nonexistent fans.

"If Geoff and Brody get kicked off early, it would be good to have an alliance." I told the camera in the RR backdrop. "And in spite of Josee's smile looking like she's about to tear something to pieces, she and Jacques are quite nice, if a bit egotistical."

"Are you sure they're nice?" Bridgette asked. "Not to be distrustful or anything, but last time I trusted someone I didn't know on a reality show, I got kicked off early."

"Which is why I need to get to know them." I answered. "If I gain their trust, they'll let their guard down and if they're backstabbers, we'll pick up on it."

The Reality TV Pros nearly got kicked off, actually. They got a penalty when they arrived without their cheese and very nearly missed out, but the Tennis Rivals just fell short by a foot.

We stayed the night in Paris, again. Well...it was already nighttime. We stayed for an extra day and set off the next evening. Still, it meant time away from the cameras, so some of the teams split up. I let Bridgette and Geoff go off together for a few hours. I hung out with Brody for awhile, and then I went to do some window shopping (I had money, but who knew what I might need – or want – to buy later on in the trip? There were 23 more episodes to go) and ran into Taylor. Okay, well, I hadn't liked what I'd seen of her, but I'd try to be friendly.

"Hey." I smiled. "Taylor, isn't it?"

"That's me." Taylor yawned theatrically. "Sorry if I don't remember your name."

"It's Elle." I reminded her. "Mind if I hang out with you? Bridgette's with Geoff and shopping's boring alone."

"It's only boring if you can't buy anything." Taylor said in a bored tone. "Daddy gives me, like, a huge allowance. Mom tries to get me to spend it on what she thinks is 'sensible' but I'm like 'no way, Mom, that is so lame'."

"Speaking of your mom, where is she?" I asked.

Taylor shrugged. "Probably shopping somewhere else. She tried to drag me along to whatever she wanted, but I took off with my allowance. Like, there's no way I'm doing her boring ideas of what's fun. Anyway, you wanna shop or not?"

After Taylor's initially frosty deamenour, she softened up as we hung out. She was really interested when she heard I'd already been on four seasons of reality TV and begged for real details about her favourites. Meanwhile, she told me about all of her achievements and her life at home. As it turned out, she was a real Daddy's girl and felt that Kelly only embarrassed her most of the time. "But it doesn't matter, because I can pretty much get her to do whatever I want!"

Despite the fact that Taylor started being friendly with me, I only liked her less as we hung out. She was so hard on Kelly! Sure, I argued with my mom, and Geoff broke the rules tons of times, but we both loved our mom and would never treat her the way Taylor treated Kelly.

After the shopping trip with Taylor (although I didn't actually have the money for anything – the only reason I tried things on was because Taylor insisted I did and got all disappointed when I said I wouldn't buy the things she deemed 'cute'), it was a relief to get back to the actual competition that evening.

**Seriously, it's always night in this universe's version of Paris! So I figured I'd give everyone a free stay overnight and during the day in Paris. Episode 4 will be coming!**


	66. Chapter 66: A Place I Won't Spell

**We're continuing! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Gage the Hedgehog, StarHeart Specials, and the guest reviewer. And THANK YOU for getting me to 200 reviews!**

The next leg of the journey began that evening. This time, of course, we had to wait longer to get our tip, but not as long as the Reality TV Pros. This actually did give us the chance to see Junior take one look at Carrie, and then go all starry-eyed. He immediately put on a deep voice as he introduced himself with his real name. Carrie simply smiled in a friendly way and introduced herself (I should add here that a mime had stolen the travel tip they were supposed to have and Devin was chasing him to get it back).

Poor kid! The minute she'd introduced herself, his father was shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you. Dwayne Senior. I see you've already met Junior. This kid...what a great little guy!"

"Dad!" hissed Junior.

Dwayne steamrollered on. "I mean, he acts up sometimes, but..."

"C'mon, homie!" Devin, finally having gotten the travel tip back, called.

I felt sorry for Junior, even to the point of catching his eye and rolling mine. Embarrassing parents were the worst. Now, if Junior acted the way Taylor did with her respective parent, I could understand it better. But unlike Dwayne, Kelly just let her kid walk all over her.

We were told to get to the train station and catch a train to somewhere in the South of France that skirted the Mediterranean.

Bridgette and I took the subway, and by chance, the Ice Dancers as well as Geoff and Brody, were waiting for the same one. However, they got on the first train, which was full by the time the first five teams were on it. Bridgette and I would be one of the first teams on the next train.

As we waited, the station was filled with the other teams. Chet and Lorenzo, who arrived separately, were fighting again, Stephanie and Ryan were making out, while Mary commented on the spray tan Tom and Jen were wearing, making Ellody giggle. Well, they did look kind of orange, but I wasn't going to tell them that.

I went up to the Fashion Bloggers and said "Wow, you guys look great with that tan! That colour goes _so _well with your outfits."

Both of them started preening at that. Good! I wanted to befriend as many teams as possible. I already knew it was a lost cause with the Goths, since the only time they'd ever spoken to anyone besides themselves was when I asked their names (Later on, I found out that their first televised words was when Ennui was drawing Crimson and asked her if she wanted to look alive in the picture).

We arrived at the station before everyone else had finished the first challenge. I grabbed the tip. "It's a Botch or Watch." I informed Bridgette. "Is it your turn?"

Bridgette nodded and took the tip. According to it, the next travel tip was attached to the fin of a dorsal shark, and everyone had to grab theirs from one of them. So yeah, I had to draw a cute little caricature, and Bridgette had to dive into shark-infested waters and seek one out. Yeah, that's fair.

Chet said the same thing. "This is so unfair!"

Stephanie was giving her partner a little parting talk, just in case he didn't survive. "Baby, if one of those sharks eats you, I will eat that shark so we will always be together."

I wished Bridgette good luck. "Don't forget, I swam with sharks for a key. This should be a cinch. I mean, we've done it before, right?"

Bridgette's smile was nervous, but she managed it. "I can do this." she muttered to herself, before wading into the sea. As she did so, a yacht pulled up to reveal...wait, when did the Fashion Bloggers get off the train? I'm sure they boarded it with us. Well, somehow, they'd ended up on a yacht.

"Hi, everyone!" Tom called, waving. "Hope you didn't miss us!"

At the same time, Dwayne was paddling to shore, reading the tip. "Go get a bucket!" he called to Junior. "We gotta build a castle!"

As I found out when Bridgette got back (just as the third train arrived and the Geniuses got back to shore – after Total Drama, we both found swimming with sharks easy), said sandcastle was meant to be a replica of the Palace of Versailles, and then this tiny architect guy would approve it.

I was glad Bridgette and I worked well together as a team and both did our fair share. From that angle, it looked like Stephanie was just lying next to Ryan while he sculpted the sand, and Chet and Lorenzo were just throwing sand at each other. MacArthur was basically making all of her team's decisions, and likewise, Emma may have worked hard, but she made Kitty do everything her way. The two of us communicated well and sculpted equally.

Still, it was a long, hard process. Actually, Geoff and Brody had to work really hard on theirs, since Brody was last out of the water, and everyone was working on their sandcastles by then (well, the Geniuses were still planning, but...)

Dwayne and Junior got the first tip, but the Ice Dancers actually came in first. We had to take a boat and get to the coast of Iceland, and we arrived eleventh this time, between the Vegans and Mom and Daughter. Why were we getting progressively worse? The Ice Dancers kept getting better and better – third, second, first...

Now, I hadn't talked to the Vegans yet, but they'd seemed really sweet, so Bridgette and I started up a conversation with them. And yeah...eventually I became a bystander, not being into the environment or any of that natural granola type thing (I respect it, I just know next to nothing about it), and left Bridgette to forge a friendship while I went over to the team we'd only just beaten. Taylor grinned at me as I walked over. Like we were best friends or something.

"Hey, how did it go for you guys?" I asked.

"Okay, I guess." Taylor answered. "But it would've been better if Mom hadn't wasted so much time getting that stupid tip."

"I'm doing my best, Taylor." Kelly said, no inflection in her voice. She smiled at me. "You're...Elle...did I get that right? Taylor said you two have been hanging out."

I shrugged. "We ran into each other while we were in Paris."

"And OMG, she should have bought, like, _so _many things while we were there," Taylor told Kelly. "But she didn't. I was, like, two seconds away from offering to let her borrow some of my money."

I tried to smile and talk pleasantly with the team, but the whole time, I was wondering why Kelly never stood up for herself, why she let Taylor be so harsh with her.

Geoff and Brody only just made it to the Carpet of Completion -and Brody was disorientated, since he'd had to endure tons of electric shocks to keep their boat moving. But Don had to take a helicopter back to the beach to let the Geniuses know that their time spent planning had put them in last place, and therefore out of the competition. It was still late morning in Iceland, and we'd set off after spending the night there.

Bridgette was becoming fast friends with the Vegans. "They're both so nice, and we have all the same views on animals." she told me. "Would you believe they only came third to last in the first challenge because they _walked _their camel, so it got a rest?"

I frowned. "Would you have done that?"

"Probably not," Bridgette admitted, "But I'm impressed that anyone would go to such lengths to look after animals. Although, I think camels are used to carrying a lot of weight."

I spent the extra time we had in Iceland talking to everyone else. I finally moved past the basic questions with the Ice Dancers and started trying to find a common interest. Surprisingly, Jacques was willing to listen to me talk about music and random things like that, while Josee only started asking questions when she learned I'd been on reality TV before. "So, what kind of strategies worked? How far did you get? What's more important, physical and mental skills or people skills?"

"Well..." I said, "The aim of that game was not to get voted off, so I think people skills. This time around, I think our physical strengths are more important, since we can't get voted off. It's actually a lot more relaxing, not having to worry so much about whether the friends you've made are going to stab you in the back, or whether you're going to have to backstab them. Heather, one of my teammates several times – she was a good manipulator, but she wouldn't last five minutes in this game, unless she paired up with someone really strong, like...well, she just started dating Alejandro, who would totally dominate this game without having to say a word." I was careful not to say too much, because I knew that Josee was trying to get me to give her strategies to beat us. But she didn't lose her cool or anything – well, not that I knew of. She kept asking questions, throwing in several that made me think I'd misjudged her and that she really wanted to get to know me. I wasn't sure if she really liked _me, _or if she just wanted my strategies.

I also made sure not to mention Owen and Noah, who had been on a variety of reality shows and knew them better than I did. Owen might well blurt out everything to Josee before Noah could stop him, and that would give the Ice Dancers too much of an advantage. Well, I didn't want any team to get an advantage at the expense of another...unless it happened to us and was unavoidable, of course, but we wouldn't go fishing for it like Josee was.

Whether Josee actually wanted to be friendly or not, Jacques felt more genuine, and I decided I liked him better. He didn't constantly ask me about Total Drama and strategy. He even said "Don't worry about Josee...she gets very competitive sometimes...in fact, I do too. But trust me, if she didn't like you, she'd ask someone else who was reality TV-savvy."

I smiled. "Thanks, Jacques. I don't really mind her asking questions, but I'm just as competitive as you two are. Me and Bridgette have been on Total Drama before, and while we're sort of here for fun, our philosophy is that we're in it to win it."

I chatted to the Best Friends, too. They were the easiest team to talk to, to be honest. They were both such friendly, open people, especially Devin. Once I asked questions, he'd always give answers, and then ask the same thing of me. Within half an hour, I'd learned about some of the crazy events that had happened, why he'd suggested doing this race to Carrie and why he would've rather done this with her than with Shelley, his girlfriend (and don't think I didn't notice Carrie's face falling for a second when he mentioned her).

But all too soon, it was time everyone got a good night's sleep, because we'd be woken up with only an hour to get ready to move on.

**Iceland...never been, but with the temperature, I don't want to go. However, I've got another place later on in this show that I'm going to visit for the first time...and it's a lot hotter than Iceland.**


	67. Chapter 67: Author Avatar New Friend

**Okay, let's get back to the show! Also, I'm going to add here that sometimes the Icelandic sentence varies in vowels (like Laurie says 'gava', but Emma says 'gavu'), so ignore my horrible spelling and interpretation. Thanks for reviewing, jacqwon14 (I don't think Alejandro would have to cheat, tbh – and his style of manipulation doesn't really count as cheating most of the time), StarHeart Specials (no – the episode is nearer than that, but good guess), Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Bloodylilcorpse, and Gage the Hedgehog.**

Starting out in eleventh place was so not a good thing for us "Beach Babes". We had to take a bus to a geyser field and find the Don Box there.

We got the first bus, but only just. All the teams behind us except for Kelly and Taylor had to get a later one.

When we finally got to the geyser field, the Don Box had an "All In".

"'Broken Icelandic Telephone.'" Bridgette read. "We have to find a speaker which has a recording of Don saying 'please give me my next travel tip' in Icelandic, then get through the geyser field and repeat it to a local."

I grinned. "Well, finding the speaker is the easy part." The Daters, since they were ahead of us on the bus, were currently listening to it.

Bridgette and I went to the speaker and I held down the button.

"I only got 'mina travel aubending'." Bridgette said.

I nodded. "You memorize that, I memorize the first part." We listened to it a couple more times and then spoke it out loud before braving the geyser field.

Just ahead of us, Dwayne was desperately trying to get the sentence and doing horribly, going by the look on Junior's face.

Bridgette and I stepped up to the local. "Vin salm ya last gava mer-" I sounded out.

"..mina travel aubending." Bridgette finished. The local girl smiled and held out a travel tip for us.

"Thank you!" we called as we read it, and caught the plane it told us to go to.

We were one of the first six, probably for two reasons: Because we got a surprisingly easy path through the geyser field, and because we got the sentence right on the first try. With us were the Ice Dancers, Vegans, Goths, Fashion Bloggers and Police Cadets. The Sisters were waiting next to the landing pad, having just missed out. Most people had gotten the sentence wrong and had to go back, which was why we'd managed to get out of eleventh place. I just hoped we could hang on to our lead.

I spent the first few minutes of the flight trying to talk to the Ice Dancers while Bridgette got into another conversation with Laurie and Miles. Sadly, while the competition was in heat, they weren't in the 'talking mood'. Josee wouldn't say anything, but Jacques gave me an apologetic look and said "We prefer to keep our minds on the game while the competition is in heat, so we do not converse with other teams at that time."

I nodded. "Sorry...I'll remember that." I went to sit with the Fashion Bloggers, asking them about their blog. The only blogger I'd known beforehand was Sierra, and that was all Total Drama stuff.

"Actually, have you ever commented on what kind of clothes would be fashionable and practical for a reality show like this?" I said. "I mean, I chose my blue top, green skirt and wedge heels because they were easy to run in and suited my hair."

Jen eyed my outfit critically. "I think your body type goes with short skirts, but you'd look better if you had a really form-fitting top. Halter tops just hang off you, because you're so skinny. Besides, they are _so _2000\. Like, you would look totally gorgeous and up-to-date in this one top I got in Paris.." She described one, and actually, it did sound like one of the shirts Taylor had made me try on.

"I guess I should've bought something there." I sighed. "I was worried I might need the money later, though. How much did you guys buy?"

"We practically bought out, like, at least five designer stores." Tom said, with more pride in this tone than I thought was deserving of what he was saying. "Our taxi to the Eiffel Tower had a flat tire, so we spent that time speed shopping."

As we chatted, I noticed that Tom was actually kind of feminine. I'd wondered if he and Jen were an item before, but I doubted it now, because his whole fashion-conscious outlook seemed a bit too feminine for a straight guy. When I asked them if they'd been dating, they just laughed and said they were just long-time good friends.

Well, it didn't matter what they were. They were nice people, not too competitive and focused, so it was a good break to talk to someone who didn't have winning on the brain.

When the plane touched down, Bridgette was the second to get the tip. "An Either-Or." she said. "Feast or Fossil."

I paused. "An Icelandic feast? Do you know what kind of food they eat traditionally here?"

Bridgette went a bit green. "I know there's a lot of animal innards in it. Like intestines and eyeballs..."

Ew. I wanted to be sick now, too. "Fossil. Duh."

The Goths basically stood by and watched everyone else get pickaxes, before walking off and doing Feast instead.

It was lucky we'd been on Total Drama, because if we hadn't, I would've been ready to give up on the fossil-hunting after fifteen minutes of no luck getting it out. It took us half an hour, and not only had the next plane touched down, but the Sisters had already gone. The Vegans were on their way out with their fossil. Bridgette and I passed them with ours, in fact.

"Good luck!" we called to them.

We got to sixth place, just behind Geoff and Brody, in fact. "Hey, guys." I smiled. "Hey, how's Brody going."

"Better, I think." Geoff answered. "He's started to respond to more."

Brody managed a smile. "Yeah..." he said before getting another shock.

The Goths turned out to be the winners. And still, they didn't even smile.

Kelly and Taylor got penalized after messing up the Icelandic talk, because Taylor didn't go back to the speaker and made Kelly go back on her own. And guess who Taylor blamed?

"This is all your fault! You're the mom or whatever. You can't just let me do anything I want because I'm beautiful! Come on, act like a parent, take charge!"

"Okay!" said Kelly, her voice shaky, but firm. "From now on, what I say goes!"

Taylor's reaction to Kelly doing exactly what she asked? "You can't tell me what to do."

I gave Kelly a sympathetic look, as she stared helplessly after her daughter. "I just don't know what to do for the best." the blonde confessed. "I want to do my best for Taylor, but she's so hard to please!"

I knew I needed to tell Kelly that she needed to do exactly what Taylor had said – act like the mom. But I knew that after that, she wasn't yet ready to hear it. "Want me to try to talk to her?" I offered.

Kelly smiled. "That might be a good idea. I'm so glad you've befriended Taylor. She seems to be able to talk to you."

"Well...she befriended me." I corrected. "Sort of. But..."

I didn't even like Taylor! But the annoying thing was, she was actually nice to me. If I hadn't known that she treated her own mother so horribly, I would probably have liked her, but as it was, the whole time I acted as a friend to Taylor, her harsh words to Kelly echoed in my head.

The Vegans came in last. They shouldn't have, though. Thing was, they let their fossil slide down the incline, and Dwayne found it and claimed it. Laurie actually threatened him with the gods of karma, then she and Miles had to go back and this time, they knew the only way they could win would be to...eat the Icelandic feast. And that meant eating..._meat._

Scary, huh?

But the thing was, after that, Don revealed that this was...a non-elimination round.

Laurie gasped and her eyes blazed. "You mean...I ATE ANIMALS FOR _NOTHING?!" _She jumped at Don and started beating the crap out of him, while Miles blew chunks.

I actually really sympathized with them, even though I ate meat. They must be feeling morally and physically horrible, because they not only broke their morals, but ate foods their bodies weren't used to and would have a hard time digesting. And the fact that they wouldn't have been eliminated either way...poor people.

Well,I learned a few things in Iceland. To beware the nice ones (although I kind of wanted to cheer on Laurie during her beating up Don), that competing didn't always have to mean complete focus (it was nice to talk to the Fashion Bloggers), and to NEVER try to converse with the Ice Dancers outside of the Chill Zones.

**I know I'm kind of skimping on the challenges. The reason for that is that if you're reading this, you know what the challenge is. My focus is interactions and how that will affect subsequent challenges. This is early, so I'm setting up things. You will have noticed all these possible storylines branching out. Yes, there will be a few non-canon eliminations, although not many. I have been planning out what will happen in each episode.**


	68. Chapter 68: This Is Coco-Nuts!

**Okay, okay, let's continue. Brazil! Thanks for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Bloodylilcorpse, and StarHeartSpecials (closer, but think in the first half of the season – before New Zealand).**

Let me tell you, having a lead over several teams was a total relief. We had to get a plane to Brazil...and we were one of the eight lucky teams to get on the direct flight. The other teams had to go on another one, which, as I later heard from a whiny Taylor, was full of cows. "The only reason I didn't quit right then was because Mom said she'd get me a car if I stayed."

And anyway, that plane actually arrived first because our one rolled over something, causing a flat tyre, and we had to wait for that to be fixed before the plane was able to take off. I passed the time reviewing what's been happening so far.

"So...it seems like there's three types of challenges." I mused. "All In...Either-Or..."

"And Botch or Watch." Bridgette finished. "That might come up today, because it didn't come up in Iceland and the others did."

"Well, I hope it's something that stops making me feel like you're getting all the hard ones." I joked. "All I've had to do on my own is draw you."  
"To be honest, I'm a little worried about your strategies." Bridgette admitted. "You're working really hard on making friends with everyone. Is that really a good idea?"

I shrugged. "Only time will tell. C'mon, Bridge, without the voting, people will be more inclined to help us out if they like us. Besides, I like most people on this show, apart from Taylor." I thought over what I'd said, and added "And I'm not wild about Crimson and Ennui, either, but they probably want me to leave them alone."

Bridgette looked at me seriously. "What I'm not sure about is...you're trying to be friends with the Ice Dancers. I've already noticed that Josee started asking all these questions after you mentioned Total Drama. Somehow I don't think she's doing it to be friendly."

I shrugged. "I know, but who says that she has only one motive? Maybe it's strategy and friendliness. And Jacques hasn't asked me any strategically-based questions. I still think we're okay."

We didn't talk too much about the competition during the actual flight, but it was good for us to just chill 'n' chat, the way our allies were doing. Geoff and Brody didn't strategize much, but they still skated by, and they were more interested in having a blast than winning.

We finally touched down, and headed for the Don Box. The Ice Dancers got there first, and I heard Josee say "Botch or Watch. You're up, Jacques."

What I had to do was put my hand into a oven mitt full of bullet ants and grab the tip. Okay, I'd done it with jellyfish and a towel wrapped around my hand when I was grabbing a key. This time, I had to do it, just without the towel.

We only got to the mitt fourth of all the teams, but at least we were faster than the other four left. I reached in, quick as I could, grasped the tip between thumb and forefinger, and pulled it out, gritting my teeth as the ants swarmed all over my hand and bit, making me feel as if my hand was burning.

I passed the tip to Bridgette, swatting the remaining ants off my now-swollen hand. According to it, we had to take a vine across a chasm, and swing to where a bunch of coconuts. The tips were hidden inside, so we just had to open coconuts until we found one.

This time, we overtook all of the teams on our plane except the Ice Dancers, and then we frantically searched for the tip, breaking every coconut in sight. It must've been about fifty between us before I opened one and found the tip.

By that time, Geoff and Brody had already gotten their tip, but all the other teams were still searching. Owen had even swallowed a coconut.

The next challenge was an All In. We had to go and make a headdress and tail for this carnival...whatever it was. A local would judge and approve.

The tail was easier, so I got to do that, since my bitten hand was going numb. Bridgette and I were both reasonable, but not great, at this kind of art, but we wore working hard enough to be the ninth team finished. The local looked at Bridgette who was wearing it (hey, it was blue, so it matched her clothes) and gave us the tip with a smile. Next, we had to hang-glide to the Chill Zone.

Both of us had never used a hang-glider before, but we hung on grimly and jumped into the air...and then ended up going too far and landing just past the Chill Zone. We ended up in third place, behind the Ice Dancers and Goths. Kelly and Taylor landed just after us, and Geoff and Brody struggled to shore after falling into the water. That was when Taylor told me about how Kelly promised her a car if she stayed in, and I decided enough was enough.

"Excuse me, Kelly?" I said. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" The blonde mom nodded and we walked a little way away from the rest of the contestants.

"Look, don't take this the wrong way," I said in my gentlest voice, "But I think you're doing too much to please Taylor and not enough to please yourself. She was just telling me that she tried to quit, and she only didn't because you said you'd get her a car."

Kelly, thankfully, seemed to understand. She nodded. "I know what you mean, Elle, but whenever I try to tell Taylor what to do, she either ignores me or does something to get back at me."

"That's because you give in straight after." I told her. "It's basic conditioning – she wants something, you say no. She reacts negatively, you give in. You need to tell her you're not putting up with her treating you that way any more and stick to it. If you do that a few times, Taylor will get the message that her behaviour isn't paying off. Can you at least try?"

Kelly looked unsure of herself, but she gave a nod. "I do know that I have been rather lax with Taylor over the years, but I've never known how to change things. Maybe if I try just a little harder, I can get through to her."

The Vegans reached the Chill Zone earlier, but got a penalty. As Miles explained, Laurie got into some trouble with the bullet ants and they bit her all over her face, so she was in no condition to make the costume, or walk straight, or even see clearly. And since it was an "All In" and Miles did both her part of the challenge and Laurie's part, they were penalized for it.

The Rockers stepped on the Carpet of Completion just before their penalty ended.

"Rockers in fourteenth, second last place!" Don announced. He told the Vegans that they were out.

"All our plans for the money..." Miles quavered. Laurie followed her along the beach, away from everyone else. That was sad – they were pretty much the one team Bridgette had gotten along best with. It was a bonus that they were one of the nicest and weakest teams – it would have been perfect to keep them around. But now, of course, that was impossible.

**I do actually really like the Vegans, but there was no way I could do much else with them, so I didn't do much with their elimination. There are several teams which I think could be fleshed out better, and several who I think got way too much screentime. Like I would've preferred to see more of the Father-Son team rather than the Daters hating each other for another seven episodes – they could've wrapped up that story SO much quicker...guess they wanted to use Ryan to make Devin get jealous, although ironically, Junior was the one crushing on her! Anyway, enough of my rambling. Insert witty and humorous outro here!**


	69. Chapter 69: Coff Up Cash

**Okay, let's keep going. Thanks for reviewing, StarHeartSpecials, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, and Gage the Hedgehog.**

I was pretty stoked that we'd made it to third place. It was late afternoon by the time we'd finished, so we wouldn't have a day in Brazil like we did in Paris or even an afternoon like in Iceland, so I decided to make the most of the evening. This is where I should add that we actually were provided with food on the trip. It was better quality than that stuff Chef gave us on Total Drama, but it was all cold food – nothing cooked. Thing was, we could go to restaurants if there were any near, alone or otherwise. And I found out that there was a little town, almost a village, twenty minutes' walk away from the beach, and I hadn't spent any of the money I'd brought with me (I changed it at every airport we went to). So I asked Bridgette if she wanted to skip the usual food and go find something real, and she agreed. But we had two more people to ask.

"Hey, guys!" I called to Geoff and Brody. "Me and Bridge are going to go find a restaurant. I'm paying. Wanna come?"

"Yeah!" they chorused, joining us.

"But by the way, no disappearing on us to make out." I warned my teammate and my brother. "Or not bothering to disappear before you start on that. Otherwise, I'm ditching you guys and just taking Brody."

Yep, it was bliss to eat something hot for once. But interestingly enough, the Ice Dancers had chosen the same place, and walked in just as we were being served.

"Hey, Jacques, Josee!" I called, waving them over. Both of them smiled and took the table next to us.

"Congratulations on getting first place again." I said.

"Thank you, Elle." Jacques answered. "I hope your team has better luck than you did today."

I shrugged. "I know you two are used to first place, but I'm not. So in my book, third is pretty good."

The six of us talked pleasantly over the evening, and I started to feel a little less wary towards Josee. Maybe it was that I'd had a glass of wine with my meal, but it didn't matter. She still treated me in a friendly way, just as Jacques did, and that night, she didn't ask me so many questions. Well, she did ask me one Total Drama based question, about why I got kicked off in Greece.

I answered "Cause I'd accidentally revealed that I knew Alejandro was a backstabbing snake and he wanted me off the show before I could do anything. I later saw a confessional of him in that episode, talking about me, acting as if he admired my perceptiveness then saying that he couldn't allow me to compete any further." I grinned. "But I got brought back!"

We even walked back together, and for that short time, we weren't competitors any more. We were...well, almost friends, just as I'd wanted.

But all the same, the next morning, we had to jet. Literally. We were told to go to the airport and get the next flight to Transylvania, Romania.

I grinned at Bridgette. "Vampire country, huh?" I laughed. "Sounds like the Goths will fit right in. Unlike us."

We were all on the same bus to the airport, though. I heard Crimson and Ennui talking.

"What is this strange feeling in my chest?" Crimson was asking.

"I fear it may be...happiness." Ennui told her. Okay, emo much? Their goth culture made happiness a foreign emotion?

On the other hand, the Ice Dancers were pretty upset that they couldn't keep their lead with the bus. In fact, Josee raged for some time and when we got to the airport, I saw Jacques having to wake her to get off the bus.

Bridgette and I kept our lead in flight bookings. But we were only fourth to get our tickets, because Stephanie made Ryan throw her to the front so she got them tickets for the earlier flight.

When we got on the flight, I noticed our seats were in the same row as the Sisters, a team I hadn't really talked to. But they'd seemed really nice, so I leaned across the aisle, smiled and said "Hey."

Emma glanced up and muttered a "Hey" but didn't do anything else.

Kitty, on the other hand, smiled brightly and said "Hey...Ellie, was it?"

"Elle." I corrected her. "Funny, you sound like a friend I have who has trouble remembering names. At least you have more of an excuse than her. How's your team going?"

Kitty glanced over at Emma and said "Fine, I guess." She lowered her voice and confided "Emma's, like, _reaaally _competitive. She completely refuses to have any fun doing this." She smiled. "She really needs a boyfriend or something to help her loosen up."

I giggled. "One of my other friends-" well, Courtney was sort of my friend - "Just got even more uptight when she got a boyfriend. She made his life hell, telling him what to do, making him sign a relationship contract that was like 32 pages long..."

Kitty blinked, and than said "Wait, are you one of the teams that was on Total Drama?"  
I frowned. "You knew there were teams on Total Drama that were going to be here?"

"Of course I knew!" Kitty exclaimed. "This show is called Total Drama Presents, so I knew some old contestants would be here." She looked again at me and said, "Oh yeah, I remember seeing you! To be honest, you didn't get as much screentime as I expected, except for the first and the third season. But the reason was...oh yeah, I'd forgotten you'd made friends with Courtney in All-Stars. You were talking about her, weren't you?"

I smiled. "You watched Total Drama Action then, I guess, if you recognized the contract thing."

At this point, Emma looked up again and hissed "Kitty!"

Kitty made a "sad emoticon" face and turned back to her sister, who was whispering something stern to her.

Bridgette had been talking to the team in front of us – the Police Cadets – but now she flopped back down. "Those two are cool." she remarked.

"Uh-huh." I nodded.

"Although MacArthur is a little _too_ competitive. Sanders wants to win too, but she's more relaxed about it. It was interesting to talk to her. Police cadet school sounds really tough."

When we touched down in Transylvania, it was dark and rainy. And then we saw the castle we were meant to go to. Spooky, or what? Half the teams looked a little freaked out. The Goths were simply impressed.

Finally, everyone started running to get to the top first. The Goths were ahead, but the Ice Dancers were close behind, followed by the Cadets and then us. That's how I saw MacArthur pass the Ice Dancers, and then, it happened. Sanders attempted to catch up with her partner, but as she did, Josee said in a mocking voice "Oh, sorry. I didn't see you there!" Then she shoved Sanders down the path. Bridgette and I only just managed not to step on her!

"Well, that proved my point." Bridgette said in one of our confessionals later. "Those two cannot be trusted. They are definitely not good alliance buddies."

"That's exactly why we need to stay on their good side." I added. "Those two teams have a rivalry. I'm aware, we do have to watch out. We already know that Josee is the type to throw tantrums and she's overly competitive. But we don't yet know if she or Jacques will try to shove a team that gets in the way if they actually _like _that team. And I know Jacques does like me as a friend, even if Josee doesn't."

We found the Don Box pretty easily. Bridgette took the tip. It was an All In!

As Bridgette read it, she frowned. "According to this, we need to find an empty coffin. Then you have to get in, and I have to drag you and the coffin to the graveyard at the back."

"Why you?" I frowned. "Don't we get to choose this one?"

Bridgette shrugged. "It says whoever took the tip has to drag the coffin. You're not allowed to help at all."

We didn't find the coffins ourselves. Geoff and Brody made a deal with us – if one of us found two coffins, we'd use a signal, and they found them first.

Geoff was already inside the coffin, and Brody was ready to push it.

"Ready, Bridge?" I asked.

"Of course!"

I jumped into the coffin. "Time for a visit to the morgue...when I'm not dead." I joked.

I couldn't tell you how long it took to be taken to the graveyard. But the first thing I saw when I opened the coffin was Kitty taking a selfie with the grave digger.

We got our tip. We had to go to the nearby gymnastic training centre on horseback. But by the time we'd got there, four teams were ahead of us. There was a Botch or Watch coming up – a gymnastics routine approved by a trainer. And my heart dropped.

You see, much as I loved Bridgette, I couldn't count on her to get things right on the first try. She was graceful in the water, but a bit clumsy otherwise.

Of course, the Ice Dancers had left already. No matter who'd had to do it, they'd probably gotten it right straight off, since they were used to being graceful. Meanwhile, Chet was gracefully finishing the routine as we watched. Owen was struggling, while Emma aced it...I should add here that Noah was staring at her.

Bridgette's turn. She managed the balance beam and the horse, but she didn't land on her feet the first time. Kelly got approved before her, and so did Owen. Bridgette only got worse on her second try.

"You'll get it this time!" I encouraged. "You're awesome!"

Our contrast was Stephanie, and the way she was yelling at her equally-klutzy partner. "Get up, Ryan! Shake it off!"

Bridgette barely succeeded on her third try. It was lucky we got there so quickly. We left, with Stephanie's yelling at Ryan ringing in our ears, while we heard Devin falling on the mat at the end and Mickey chanting "Go, Jay, go! Go, Jay, go!"

We ended up in seventh place (just ahead of the Police Cadets), but we would've been in eighth if the Goths hadn't broken the rules. See, Crimson was supposed to stay in the coffin during the first challenge, but she'd known Ennui would want a turn in the coffin, so they'd switched.

"Wait a minute..." I said, looking closely at them. "Are you guys...close to smiling?" I grinned. "Guess Transylvania is your paradise, right?"

"Yes." the Goths chorused in their monotone. It was a little weird, how they could be happy and not even have any emotion in their voices.

"Well..." I said. "Guess I'll see you later."

The Daters only just made it to the Chill Zone before the Fashion Bloggers. As a result, the fashionistas were eliminated.

Yeah, I hadn't known Tom and Jen that well, but I'd gotten on well with them. I was definitely going to miss them.

**And so did I! These two are definitely my fourth favourite team on the show, and I was so disappointed when they left so early. And then they weren't one of the teams that got a confessional in the last episode. Ditto the other teams I like more, except for the Goths (because they got a confessional), who are second only to the Sisters.**

**I'm actually on holiday in Sydney at the moment, but the place I'm in had Wi-Fi, so...I'm moving on to Canberra on Tuesday, then Melbourne on Wednesday, but I should have internet in Melbourne since I'm staying with my sister. So I will try to keep updating.**


	70. Chapter 70: Hawaiian Non-Punch

**Now this is the place I've already booked a holiday to...Hawaii!**

We set off in the evening again, so we spent a day in Romania. This time, there really wasn't much to do, so I hung out with everyone else. Well...mostly the Sisters. Well, Kitty at least. Emma didn't seem to want to hang out with anyone else.

Kitty strongly reminded me of Lindsay. She wasn't dim-witted or anything, but she was bubbly and nice to everyone, and although she wasn't stupid, she seemed a little bit ditzy. But then, I'd thought Sierra was ditzy, too, and she was still super-smart. Maybe Kitty was the same. She certainly seemed to be emotionally smart, able to deduce a lot about relationships.

Seventh place wasn't so bad. Everyone had to take donkey carts to the Bucharest airport for our next destination, and each of them took three. We were in the third one. Sanders and MacArthur sat up front, while the rest of us sat in the back. And wouldn't you know it, it was our alliance team (although Brody spent a lot of the ride staring at MacArthur. Don't ask me why).

What was our next destination, you may ask? Well...HAWAII! Okay, so last time brought back some bad memories. Like Heather accidentally enabling Alejandro to win Total Drama World Tour. And him getting burned by the lava. Even he didn't deserve that. But I was determined to enjoy Hawaii this time, no matter what we'd have to do there.

We were all on the same flight, anyway. I got some sleep on the flight, which was good, because it was late morning in Hawaii when we arrived. We were greeted with a lei of orchids (which scared the allergy-ridden twins, but was okay for the rest of us).

The Sisters grabbed the first travel tip, but the Reality TV Pros got the second. I took the third one.

"Botch or Watch." I read. "Whoever didn't do gymnastics in Romania has to go diving for wedding rings."

We raced to the bay, and I dived in. At first, all I saw around me were bubbles as there was someone from every team diving in.

_Rings...rings...where are they?_ I only needed to find one, but there were a ton of dangerous sea creatures, and not so many shiny circular things.

I had to surface to take a breath (a few breaths...I was in the water for some time), and then dived down again. Success! As I was feeling around a rock ridge, I touched something smooth and round, with a little white jewel imbedded in it. A gold ring! This had to be it. I swam up to the surface and took a longer breath. "I found it!" I called out.

"Awesome!" Bridgette called back, running to the beach so we could meet at the shore.

Suddenly, Kitty, and then Carrie, surfaced beside me.

"Ka-bling!"

"Got one!"

"YES!" cheered Emma from the dock.

Devin was standing beside her. "Carrie, you're amazing!" he called.

I didn't hear anything myself, but Kitty was suddenly asking Carrie "Did you just squeal?"

"No!" Carrie said quickly. "I...I think it was a...dolphin?"

I narrowed my eyes, knowing she was lying, and starting to piece things together. But Kitty said it first. "You're in love with him!"

Yes, it was true. Carrie had fallen for her long-time best friend, and he had a girlfriend. She explained this to Kitty...and me, by extension. "So please don't say anything. Please?"

"I swear I won't tell." I said seriously.  
"I promise I won't," Kitty said, "But maybe someone should, you know?"

As well as us, the Sisters, and the Best Friends, the Reality TV Pros started preparing for the next challenge at the same time. According to it, it was a wedding ritual. One of us would wear a grass skirt as the "bride", and the other would be the "groom" and carry the "bride" across hot coals. If anyone caught on fire, we'd have to go back to the start.

"Since I was the one in the water, I'll probably be slower to catch on fire." I said. "So I'll be the groom." We got to work on the skirt. Meanwhile, I could hear Owen and Kitty talking. Owen was saying something about Noah dying or something.  
"He's drooling, smiling, acting sincere...he is so sick."

"No," Kitty reassured him, "He just likes my sister."

"But he's all goofy and awkward and..." I quickly stole a glance at Noah. Yeah, he was staring at Emma with a goofy expression.

"Yep, that is one serious crush." Kitty said, and she and Owen chuckled.

I nudged Bridgette. "Hear that?"

Bridgette grinned and nodded. "Wow. Who would've thought? I mean, with all the rumours going around about him and Cody especially." She laughed. "Although, I haven't seen many of those for a couple years."

I shrugged. "Sierra probably disproved them all. You know what she's like." I paused. "I wonder if she's watching this? I mean, her mom's probably not interested since Chris isn't in this, but I'm sure she would know about this, since she'd get the message, being on Total Drama and everything."

Even after being in cold water, walking across hot coals was no picnic. Especially while carrying Bridgette, who was probably only a tiny bit lighter than me.

"Bridgette, tell me something to distract me!" I begged. "Something cold...like, I don't know...just remind me of something cold."

We had to make two attempts, but I made it across the second time without catching on fire.

We finished in sixth place, just behind the Sisters and Reality TV Pros. The winners?

Geoff and Brody. I high-fived both of them. "You guys rule!"

The Best Friends had come in second, and the Ice Dancers, in third place, were standing by, with Josee sending a death glare at anyone who looked at her. I mean, Jacques looked angry and upset too, but it was nothing compared to his partner.

Kelly and Taylor arrived second to last. "Well, honey," Kelly said, "It wasn't pretty, but-"

"You need to step your game up, Mother, for serious." Taylor snapped.  
"We're a team, Taylor."

"I know you aren't used to winning, like me, but maybe you need to follow my example more, cause-"

And that's when it happened. I could see it coming, and suddenly, Kelly was yelling at her daughter.

"You've never won anything in your life, Taylor, never! Not one race, not one medal, _noth-ing_!"

"Wait, _what_?" Taylor stared. "My room is full of trophies and medals!"

"Because your dad bought a trophy store! What kind of trophies come in the mail?" Kelly challenged. "And guess who paid your coaches to lie? Yep, _Daddy."_

Taylor looked lost for words. "Beauty pageants!" she managed to stammer. "I've won beauty pageants! You can't fake those!"

But her dad had paid off those judges, too. It was true. Taylor was nothing but a loser with an inflated ego. Even so, I felt sorry for her. I mean, I'd told Kelly she needed to stand up for herself, but Taylor looked so shocked and horrified. And if I didn't know better, I'd say she was about to cry.

I put my arm around the brunette and steered her away from the cameras. "Taylor?" I said. "I'm sorry."

And that was it. The floodgates opened and silent tears dripped down Taylor's face. "How could that happen?" she whispered. "I'd rather lose and know than win without having done anything!"

"Parents always want to protect their kids from facing reality." I told her. "It just sounds like your dad went a bit too far."

"But why did Mom have to tell me _now, _while we're in the middle of a competiton?" Taylor whined. "Now I'm sure I'm gonna screw up and lose, and even if it's Mom who screws up, I won't have any reason to blame her."

"And that might actually be a good thing." I told her softly. "Face it. If you lose, Taylor, it only means you have a reason to try harder."

Stephanie and Ryan arrived last. They were saved, though, because it was a non-elimination challenge. But as it turned out, Ryan had had enough of Stephanie's competitive attitude. They may have been labelled the "Daters", but from now on, they weren't going to date.

Yeah, you heard me. Ryan dumped Stephanie. On international TV!

Well, at least no one came close to dying in Hawaii, this time.

**I actually had to write an Elegy for uni last month, and I wrote about how Heather might've felt deep down if Alejandro hadn't survived the end of TDWT. Anyway, thanks for reading. We'll get to Dubai next.**


	71. Chapter 71: Tennis Menace Ain't Rivals!

**OK. I promised Dubai, and Dubai you shall get! Thanks for reviewing, everyone.**

I didn't go anywhere to get some cooked food that evening, like in Brazil. Instead, I actually managed to get a halfway-there beach party going, just like I'd always wanted. Of course, I couldn't have everyone I wanted there, but I liked most people that were there. Yeah, there wasn't really any music I could provide, and the food was just what we were given, but I made a campfire on the beach and only one thing was needed to make it a true party – the atmosphere.

Geoff, being my party-ner in planning (I know, horrible pun, whatever), helped me set things up and made it a real thing. I wasn't allowed to buy liquor (and it wouldn't be fair, anyway), but it was still fun. Everyone was socializing, their mind off the game. Taylor stopped mulling over what Kelly had told her and started having fun. Ryan and Stephanie stayed well away from each other, and seemed perfectly happy. I even saw Ryan chatting to Carrie at one point. Even the twins stopped standing apart and looking scared, and started loosening up and having fun. _And _neither of them got hurt! Well, okay, Jay got knocked over once, but that was it, and he was fine afterwards.

Even the Ice Dancers seemed to have their minds off the competiton for a little while. Of course, they spent a lot of time showing off their incredibly graceful moves. Okay, so they probably looked a lot better when they were actually ice skating, but it was still pretty damn impressive.

People started drifting away around eleven, since Don kindly reminded us that we had a challenge tomorrow and that we might want to get some sleep, and the fire had gone out by then, anyway. But when I woke up, I was ready and raring for the next challenge.

According to the tip, we were on our way to Dubai. We only just made it on the first flight, actually. There were twelve free seats, and the rest of us would be put on the next flight. The Stepbrothers and Father and Son were right behind us.

Actually, Brody and Geoff got to hang out in an awesome First Class compartment. Jacques actually tried to take one of their chocolate cookies, but got shoved out by the flight attendant.

I had a better idea. As I passed the First Class compartment, I hissed to Geoff "Save me a cookie, yeah?"

As I went to my seat next to Bridgette, I could hear Jacques raging "That hot tub should be ours! How did we place third?"

"As my mother always says," Josee said crossly, "Bronze is the medal of failure." She spat, then pulled a little object I couldn't see properly out of her pocket. "But Mama, our luck is about to change."

"Josee's replaced her lucky rabbit's foot with a pretty rock. Oh, our luck is bound to improve!" Jacques said sarcastically.

I nudged Bridgette. "Did you hear what Jacques just said? I think I like him just a little bit more."

Bridgette looked up at the team and gasped. The minute he'd said that, the luggage compartment flew open and a bunch of objects fell on top of him. I shrugged and went to put all those things back up, and as I did, I caught a glimpse of the "pretty rock". It was a stone shaped like a trophy.

"Where did you get that?" I asked curiously.

Josee put it back in her pocket. "Hawaii." she said, her tone indicating she didn't want me to ask any more follow-up questions. I didn't need to, though. It was obviously a lava rock.

"I'm just glad I made some good memories of Hawaii this time around." was all I said. "Last time, I watched a boy get attacked by sharks, and another guy burned by lava after winning a million dollars."

"Was that on Total Drama?" Josee asked. "The World Tour one?"

I nodded. "Cody and Alejandro tied for a spot in the finale, and for some reason, Alejandro decided to knock Cody into shark-infested waters during the tiebreaker when he could've just left it at disarming him before untying Heather. Then Heather pushed him off the volcano and he got caught in the eruption." I sighed. "It seems that every reality show I'm on, there's someone who is up to no good, and something bad always happens to them, even if they win. Like Heather, who got shaved bald, and Justin, who Courtney pushed off a building. And Scott, who was mauled by a mutant shark."

I got the sleep I hadn't gotten in Hawaii on the flight. In fact, I was shaken awake by Bridgette near the end of the flight. "Elle, wake up! We're landing in half an hour, and we're starting to descend already."

Our first challenge in Dubai was an Either-Or – Serve or Squigey, or however it's spelled.

I looked at Bridgette. "Serve?"

"Definitely."

We both thought tennis would be a lot more fun and easier than window washing. Well, okay, it wasn't. I mean, Bridgette was awesome! She returned the serve from the Tennis Menace on her second try, but I still had to do it before we could move on.

A lot of other teams switched, but not us. Jacques suggested switching, and Josee agreed. "But after we win, I am throwing a MASSIVE tantrum!"

Okay, I'd seen Josee raging before. But if that was a regular thing...did that make her dangerous?

I talked about it in the confessional – just me, this time, without Bridgette. "This is why I have to still make friends with those two. They're strong competitors, yeah. It does sound like Josee might be a tiny bit unstable, but I think Jacques is okay. Thing is, I'm guessing that they might be the dangerous ones this season. They haven't done anything much yet, but I'm going to be as friendly as I can, to make sure that we're not their next target!"

I literally had to try nine times before I could return a serve. By that time, the twins and Geoff and Brody had also finished the tennis and we arrived at the Chill Zone behind most of the teams in tenth place. The Stepbrothers, Rockers and Best Friends were behind us.

And finally, the last team arrived. "Hey hey, look who got their bling on!" In walked Kelly and Taylor. Yeah, as we left, I'd seen Kelly turning on Taylor and telling her she was giving her a time out.

Taylor had replied "You can't do that! I'm your _daughter_!" But from the content look on both mother and daughter's faces, they'd come to more of an understanding.

But it didn't matter. They were out of the race.

"Oh, I guess we should have checked in _before_ shopping." Kelly sighed.

Taylor shrugged, smiling. "Meh, it was fun while it lasted."

I said goodbye to both members of the team. Taylor even gave me a hug and her mobile number. "If you want a shopping partner when we're back home, ask me. Trust me, I know what's good value." she whispered.

"Well, I did talk to a fashionista that said I would look good in this top you made me try on in Paris..." I whispered back. "Bye, Tay." And for a short moment, I actually kind of felt fond of her. Maybe I would talk to her after the race.

**So yeah, that's Dubai. For those of you who are asking "Why is Elle so intent on making friends with the Ice Dancers?" I hope I answered your question. Also, I'm going to add here that I think Jacques is truly not that bad a person – just weak. Josee, in contrast, though...what annoys me is that she's the only contestant my exact age, and she's the most unlikeable person in the race! But I forgive it, because she's fun to write.**


	72. Chapter 72: Skewered In China

**Let's get back to Dubai, before we reach China! Thanks for reviewing, Bloodylilcorpse, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, and Gage the Hedgehog. To the guest reviewer, thanks for asking, but I'm not really good at writing something I've been asked to do. However, I may write Junior/OC in the future. I am thinking of doing another RR fic, and I agree, Junior could do with a girlfriend...not a serious one, but all he gets to do in canon is have a crush on Carrie, who's already destined to end up with Devin.**

It was still morning in Dubai, so while we would be sleeping over in the gold mall, we were free to do what we wanted all day. And since shopping was the only thing to do and Bridgette wanted to spend more time with Geoff, I went with Kitty and Carrie. Kitty excitedly told us all about how she and Owen had agreed to help set up their lovestruck partners.

"Noah even offered us the win this morning – so we're in first place!" she said. "Emma acts like she doesn't like him, but I think she's still in denial. She's still hurt from her last break-up."

"Still sensitive?" Carrie asked sympathetically. "Was it not long ago?"

"Three years." Kitty said.

I chuckled. "Well, from what I've seen of her, she seems like a more serious version of Noah, so I think they'll get along great."

The next morning, I was a little worried. There were only three teams behind us, and they weren't exactly weak teams either. It didn't help that our destination was Beijing, China. Last time I was in China, I had to eat disgusting food, while Blaineley and Alejandro cheated. But then again, we didn't go to the Birds' Nest stadium.

This time, we had to take the second flight, for the first time. That meant we had an extra hour.

Carrie was watching Devin sleep, when Rock came up and said quietly "Hey, Carrie, since Dev's asleep, I gotta know...you gonna make a move on that?" He was pretty obviously looking at the packet of peanuts on Devin's armrest, but I didn't want to point this out to Carrie, who didn't get it, even when Rock reached for one.

I laughed and tossed my peanuts to the tall lean Rocker. "Here, go nuts. Or go _peanuts_." Wow, I'm on a roll with terrible puns in this race! The second one I'd made so far!

"Hey, thanks, Elle!" Rock grinned at me. "I owe you one."

"I'll hold you to that!" I called, laughing again.

In the confessional, I said "Wow. I didn't really get to talk to either of the Rockers. I know Spud's been dragging them down, though. I wonder how far Rock could go on his own?"

Bridgette shook her head at me. "What is _with _you, Elle? The only thing you've thought about this time is strategy!"

"Hey, making friends with Taylor wasn't strategy!" I defended myself. "Holding a beach party in Hawaii wasn't strategy! But I have to strategize a little bit. We're in it to win it, aren't we? I genuinely like most of the people around here – I mean, yesterday I went shopping with Kitty and Carrie, and that had nothing to do with alliances or strategy."

Bridgette gave a sigh. "All right. I'm sorry. We are in it to win it, but I'm just worried that you're strategizing a bit too much."

I shrugged her concerns off. "Don't worry, Bridge, I'm still being me. No way would I let this competiton get in the way of my real self."

Still, we were the first people on our flight to get a tip. "It's an All-In." I said. "We have to parachute above the stadium and...make it through the 'doughnut hole' in the stadium roof to move on?"

Well, that was the easy part. Bridgette and I didn't let out our parachutes until we were close to the ground, so we landed in the right place, without the wind blowing us off-course.

That meant we'd made up some time. In fact, we'd gotten in just ahead of the first and second place Sisters and Reality TV Pros, as well as the Best Friends. We were still just a little bit slower than the Ice Dancers, though. The next challenge was another All-In. One of us had to assemble and deep-fry a skewer of Chinese street food, and the other had to eat it.

"Okay." I said. "I did the Chinese lunch in the World Tour. As long as I don't let that stuff touch my tongue, I can eat it."

Most teams were still assembling their skewers, but Lorenzo was already munching on his, although he puked afterwards.

Carrie looked green just the minute Devin said the word "worms", and then barfed. Ryan calmly deep-fried a skewer for Stephanie to eat. After Jacques fell victim to the scorpion he was meant to eat, Josee basically forced the skewer down his throat, and they got their next travel tip.

"I'm not ranking as low as we did last time!" I raged as Bridgette assembled the creatures. "If we do, that'll be last place in a few locations, and it's too early to go home!"

Emma ordered Kitty to do the preparing, and Noah copied her, insisting that he ate and Owen prepared. Wow. Major disadvantage there – and all to impress Emma? Seriously?

And it didn't work, anyway. Emma didn't realize that Noah was acting like her, and just thought he was being mean to Owen. "Stop being so bossy!"

I stepped in. "Why are you telling him off for acting like you? You didn't give Kitty a choice in what she did, either." But I don't think Emma even heard me, because she was too busy deep-frying her skewer.

I had to eat each of the pieces on the skewer one by one, but I made progress. And I didn't barf. Well...not until we got our next travel tip.

"It's a Botch or Watch." Bridgette said. "Whoever didn't dive for rings in Hawaii must pull their partner by rickshaw across the Great Wall of China to the Chill Zone." The local who gave us the tip also handed us a very basic map to find it.

Okay, so I was sick over the side of the rickshaw after about five minutes of Bridgette pulling it. But that was it! Also, we caught up to another team."

"STOP – HITTING – EVERY – BUMP – ON – PURPOSE!" Stephanie was screaming at her partner. Ryan ignored her, but Bridgette was checking where she was going. She still hit a tonne of bumps, but not so many as Ryan was, judging by Stephanie's yelling.

Actually following the Daters – sorry, they're now called the Haters – was a great idea! We got to the Chill Zone early.

"Beach Babes, you're in second place!" Don announced. I gave a squeal and high-fived Bridgette. "We rule!"

When the Ice Dancers ended up in fifth place (with the Reality TV Pros and Sisters coming in third and fourth respectively), they went to make a confessional, and judging by the screaming, Josee was throwing another tantrum. How many had she thrown so far? Four, maybe even five?

The Rockers came in last. "If it makes you feel any better," Don said, "You would've been penalized anyway. Rock was supposed to pull the rickshaw."

Rock gave Spud an annoyed glare. "Told you!"

Spud still apologized for blowing it, and the two rock stars-in-training had to go. Too bad...they would've rocked the next challenge we did!

**Yep, I kicked the Rockers off early! I really didn't want to bother with the double elimination, and the Rockers had no important storyline in the scheme of this story, so I figured they could go here instead. Sorry to those of you who like the Rockers.**


	73. Chapter 73: Rockers Ain't Gonna Rock

**Right, let's keep moving. Finland, right? And before you say anything, since the Rockers are gone, the Ice Dancers are in a sauna with the Goths, so the Beach Babes take their place with the Adversity Twins. Thanks for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog (what can't you believe? My elimination change?) and Bloodylilcorpse.**

Coming in second was such a confidence boost after being in eleventh place. It started getting dark about an hour after the Rockers left, so we didn't have that much time in China left. That was all right – I was getting a lot of stares from people, because I was Western. In fact, the only people not getting stared at were the Asian-Canadian Sisters.

Once Ryan and Stephanie had their travel tip, I hit the Don Box and Bridgette read the tip. "We're going to Finland." she told me.

I considered it, then shrugged. "That's near Sweden, right? Wonder if it's just as cold?"

We were all on the same flight, again, so we didn't have a lead, but that didn't matter. We were fourth to the Don Box, where Owen and Noah were still waiting.

I took the tip. "All-In. We have to sit in a sauna, fully-clothed, for ten minutes. At the highest heat. And we have to go in with another team. Then we have to cross a semi-frozen river to get to the next Don Box."

The second and third teams had already gone into a sauna, so I looked at the Reality TV Pros. "You wanna start up the challenge with us?"

"No thanks!" Noah said quickly, before Owen could answer. "We thought we'd wait for Emma and Kitty."

"Oh, I forgot – you made an alliance with them." I said teasingly. "Good luck on that – from what Kitty told me, I think you're good for Emma."

We ended up in a sauna with the Adversity Twins, who seemed completely unaffected by the heat.

"What is _with _you two?" I said in irritation, after three minutes. "I'm about to die here, and you two go on about how you're next to cursed, but you can take the heat easy."

"We both suffer from temperature dyslexia." Jay explained. "It means we can't feel too hot – _or_ too cold."

"We get burns and frostbite all the time," Mickey added, "But this challenge is something that we're actually good at!" They attempted to high-five, but missed each other's hand.

I spent the next seven minutes rubbing sweat off my forehead and feeling glad of my halter top – at least it meant I wouldn't have pit stains, even if it was out of date.

When Bridgette and I emerged, we must have looked terrible, sweaty and tired. The twins, however, looked ready to take on the world compared to us.

"We gotta...run..." I gasped out, breathing in the cold Finnish air. We ended up right behind the Goths at the river.

"There's the semi-frozen river." Ennui said in his monotone. But before anyone could get in, someone bumped into Bridgette and I, knocking both of us and the Goths into the river.

"Hey! What the-" I began.

It turned out that it was Kitty, who for some reason was freaking out, rubbing at herself. But my point is, having to swim in the river was what caused us to see what was possibly the weirdest thing I'd ever seen on a reality show.

The twins had already gotten their tip, and just as we got ours, the Goths climbed out of the river. I took one look at them...and stared.

All of their makeup and wigs to make them look scary and emo had washed off. And without their makeup, they looked...well, ordinary. Ennui, under all that makeup, was preppy, with brown hair and a depressed look. Crimson turned out to have blue eyes and cute little ginger pigtails. They actually looked like pretty nice people.

Bridgette, who had just gotten the tip, began "We have to go-" But then she saw them and gasped.

Neither of them had noticed us staring, but they'd noticed the way they looked. They took one look in their compact mirrors and screamed.

"My face!" exclaimed Ennui.  
"Don't look at me!" cried Crimson.

I turned back to Bridgette. "Where are we going?"

"Downtown." Bridgette answered. She looked back at the two Goths. "Should we do something?"

I shook my head. "They didn't see us staring at them, I think. They'd hate it if they knew we saw them without their makeup."

The next Don Box was next to an open air stage. And the tip showed that it was my turn to get my rock on! Well, it was air guitar, but I could do that. We would be judged by the applause meter. If we got it to its highest setting with the crowd's approval, we could go to the Chill Zone. Get it too low, and we'd have to wait our turn to do it again.

"It's too bad the Rockers got kicked off." I sighed. "They would've dominated this challenge."

"Good luck!" Bridgette encouraged.

I practised backstage, and put a careless look on my face as I "strummed" like crazy.

Noah first got booed off the stage. While Owen went out to "comfort" him, the Goths turned up with paper bags over their heads. Don, who was backstage, at first didn't believe who they said they were because "I'm not even remotely creeped out."

"But...we have a camera crew with us." Crimson pointed out.

By that time, everyone was there. Mickey was up next, but I was third. And...both of us blew it. It didn't help that the crowd was full of goths that looked scarier than Crimson or Ennui. And much, much scarier than Gwen.

So yeah, I blew it on my first try. As did Kitty, MacArthur, Junior, Ryan, Jacques..the list goes on. When Ennui took his turn, his paper bag fell off and we heard someone yelling "Get off the stage, preppy!" Poor guy.

Meanwhile, the Best Friends were marvelling at what Crimson really looked like. They were very complimentary, but Crimson just looked worried at their words and said "You're thowing a lot of positive emotions my way, and I don't know what to do with that."

I turned around. "Crimson, don't be so self-conscious! It doesn't matter what you look like. Just because you don't look emo right now doesn't mean you aren't. And even if you can't love yourself no matter what, there are tons of shops selling Goth-style stuff downtown. If you and Ennui buy some makeup or something, you could probably please this crowd without even having to play air guitar."

Actually, what I hadn't realized was that Ennui had come off the stage and had heard what I was saying. He looked at me through the paper bag he was wearing. "Thank you, but that won't be necessary." He looked at Crimson. "This is just what the world is for us now. I think I know how to handle it."

But after Mickey freaked out on his second try, I approached the challenge again. I put on my meanest look, dropped to my knees and started "playing" with new vigour. It took three minutes, but the crowd cheered, and I had won.

"C'mon, Bridge, let's run!" I called, and we both sped to the Chill Zone.

Don, after all the teams had reached the stage, had left to wait at the Chill Zone. "Bridgette, Elle, congratulations. You're in first place." he said.

"Omigosh, omigosh!" I squealed. "We won this bit! I can't believe it!"

More people arrived, one by one. The Sisters, the Police Cadets...the Ice Dancers came in fourth again. And the Goths eventually arrived back, now wearing new gothic clothes. Apparently they'd planned to quit, but just as I'd said, they'd found a shop full of the right makeup and style, and they made a comeback.

Crimson saw Josee holding her lava rock, and said "Whoa, is that a Hawaiian lava rock?"

"What of it?" Jacques asked.

"That's hardcore. Those things cast a shroud of darkness over all who plunder them." Ennui explained.

"Can we have it?" Crimson asked.

Jacques glared at his partner. "Your good luck charm has been cursing us all this time? Well done, Josee!"

"How do we break the curse?" Josee asked, her dark eyes wide with desperation.

"I think I might know." I said. "One of my teammates on the first season of Total Drama, Beth, cursed our team in a similar way. She took this tiki doll off an island, because she didn't hear Chris warning us not to take anything from it. Our luck got better when she left, but all she really needed to do was return the tiki doll to the island. I'm guessing all you need to do is bring the lava rock back to Hawaii." I looked at the goths. "Is that it?"

They nodded.

Eventually, the Reality TV Pros were the last team to make it to the Chill Zone, eliminating the Adversity Twins. I'd be sad to see them go, but still, they'd lasted much longer than anyone had expected.

**I thought Elle would be good at air guitar, so I figured this would be the place for the Beach Babes to win a challenge.**


	74. Chapter 74: Fear of Frontrunners

**Okay, okay...where we going? Oh yeah...Zimbabwe! Thanks for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog and Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart. But could you PLEASE make your reviews more specific?**

Since it was nighttime by the time we finished the challenge in Finland, we had to get some shuteye straight away. There was no time to socialize or talk to any of the others before we went to sleep, got up in the morning, got ready, and grabbed our travel tip, first.

"We have to go to Helsinki Airport and get the next plane to Zimbabwe." I said.

Bridgette didn't have to be told twice. We caught the first taxi that got near enough for us to flag it down.

When we got to the airport, I observed the by-play between Dwayne and his son when he said he should hang on to both their tickets.

"I can hold my own ticket!" Junior protested. He'd gotten a paper cut when his dad took it off him.

"I know you can," Dwayne answered, "I'm just not sure you should. When you're a dad, you can hold as much stuff as you want. For now, let's go find you a bandage – and a lollipop."

"It's a paper cut. I'm fine." Junior insisted.

"So fine a lollipop wouldn't help, hm?"

"Dad, I'm not a baby. Candy's not going to work."

"A balloon?"  
"Da-ad!"

"How old is Junior again?" I whispered to Bridgette.

She shrugged. "Twelve? Thirteen?"

"I think thirteen." I said. "He's definitely old enough to take care of his own things and be independent. Someone needs to tell his dad that the boy is actually quite mature for his age and shouldn't have to put up with that kind of patronizing behaviour." I paused. "Maybe I'll try to think of a way to separate them on the flight so I can tell Dwayne...tactfully, of course...that he's not giving his son enough credit and independence."

Bridgette smiled. "Maybe that would be a good idea." She paused, and than said jokingly. "You know that if they gain a bit more understanding, there's a better chance of them winning this thing, right?"

"Duh!" I laughed. "Who cares? I'd rather have a million better parents than a million dollars. I tried to help Kelly stand up to Taylor – and I want to help Dwayne understand Junior better."

The Ice Dancers weren't coming straight to Zimbabwe. They were booking for a flight to Hawaii to return the lava rock, then they'd come to Zimbabwe from there and do the challenge. I would've told them that they were going to come in last, but I could tell it wouldn't make a difference. They were set on breaking the curse.

I actually did catch Dwayne on his own, near the end of the flight. "Excuse me, Dwayne," I said politely, "But could I have a word with you?"

Of course, he was agreeable, so we took a seat at the deserted back of the plane. "I couldn't help overhearing your conversation with your son at the airport, and I feel that he thinks you're treating him as if he's...well, a little younger than he is."

"I just want him to be safe!" Dwayne protested. "I need to make sure he's all right, and happy."

"Look," I said, "I don't know if you realize this, but your son is very mature for his age. Do you know what most thirteen-year-olds are like? They have a complete lack of judgement and have very little control over themselves. Your son, however, has a lot of control, and I get the feeling that he is a lot more capable than most others of his age. I also think he's a litlte annoyed at the moment, because he feels as if you're not acknowledging that he's growing up. I don't mean to be impolite or anything, but I felt like I should tell you, because it might start affecting your gameplay."

I think Dwayne wanted to take into account what I'd told him. I really do, but judging by what happened in the challenge that day, I very much doubt that it was successful.

When we arrived at Harare airport, each team had to take a jeep to Victoria Falls. Bridgette drove, while I kept an eye on the map and where we had to go.

Actually, the Haters arrived at Victoria Falls from a "shortcut", at the same time as us. They were barrelling towards us, and Stephanie yelled out "STOOOOP!" Ryan had to brake hard.

"Is anyone else here yet?" Stephanie asked us.

"No." I told her, as Bridgette went to get our tip. "We were the first."

Stephanie grabbed her team's tip, saying to Ryan "Told you my shortcut would-"

"Almost kill us? Yes. Yes, it did." Ryan shot back.

"It's a 'selfie safari'." Bridgette said. "Check the jeep's glove compartment. There should be a camera in there."

I took the camera, and looked at the tip. "Okay, so a selfie on the waterfall, then a selfie with the white rhino in Zambeessi National Park? Wow. This will be pretty epic!"

We actually had to do the first selfie twice, because we didn't hold the camera at the right angle the first time. As it was, the second one was awful, with our hair all over the place and both of us screaming. But who cared, only Don would need to see them. And everyone at home, but everyone I cared about had seen me at my worst. At least we didn't get separated. A lot of teams seemed to have that happen. In fact, the first thing we heard as we drifted downstream was Dwayne calling for Junior.

Anyway, so the two of us set off in search for the rhino, when we saw something rustling in the bushes. Then we heard a scream, and ran over to see...

Devin had just accidentally tackled Junior. Carrie was standing by, with a look of concern.

"What happened?" I asked. "Is everyone okay?"

Carrie asked Junior the same question. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Devin helped the kid up, and he smiled and said "I'm fine, I mean..." and here he put on a deeper voice, "I'm fine."

"So...what happened to your dad?" I asked. "Did you guys get separated?"

Junior gave a shrug. "Yeah. No biggie."

"You're out here all alone?" Carrie said.

I could tell Junior was glad he'd gotten her attention, because he put on the deep voice again and said "Yeah. Just me and my chest hair."

I doubled over to stop myself giggling at that. Seriously? _That's _the kind of thing he says to impress someone? Oh well, he was only thirteen.

"Think we should go now?" Bridgette whispered. "Or should we offer to let him tag along with us?"

"He seems to be getting along with Devin and Carrie fine." I whispered. "And I think he has a little bit of a crush on Carrie, so we'd just get in the way. Besides," I pointed down. "I think these are rhino tracks, so we better go if we want a chance of coming in first again."

As a matter of fact, this time, we only came in eighth. It took us ages to find the rhino, and whichever one of us who didn't take it also had to be touching it in the picture, so that was a little worrying for either of us. Eventually, Bridgette gently put her hand on the rhino's side, and I snapped a pic in seconds.

The Police Cadets won the challenge. I guessed they had an easy time, since they had a major rivalry with the Ice Dancers and they didn't have to do so much when there was no focus on beating them specifically – you know, since they were so far behind.

The Goths came in after that. Brody and Geoff had come in third, earlier, and I actually felt guilty – I hadn't talked to our alliance buddies for ages.

"Hey, guys!" I called to them. "Oh wow, it feels like forever since I talked to you!" I gave Geoff a quick hug and grinned at Brody. "So where have you guys been?"

"Chilling." Brody said. "Not coming in last. It's been kinda hectic since we left Hawaii – guess that's why we haven't talked."

"Well, not exactly." Geoff said. He gave me a jokingly hard stare. "I've been seeing Bridge every day, but not you. What's up with that?"

"Sorry, bro." I said teasingly. "Your kid sister can't tag along with you all the time. It's good I get to squeeze in some time with you now, huh?" We had another quick hug.

Dwayne did eventually turn up, some time after Junior, and although he hadn't completed the challenge, Junior had done it all without him, and when I saw the father's shock, I caught his eye and winked. I had been proved right!

The Ice Dancers did arrive after him, but they'd come in last. If it wasn't a non-elimination round, that would've been it for them, but they were still in.

I had been a little awkward with them over the last couple of days. But now, I smiled and went up to them. "Did you get the lava rock thing sorted?"

Josee nodded with a smile. "Done. We're ready to win the gold now."

"Okay, scared now. Totes." I said. "You placed high in, like, every challenge before you got that rock. First in what, like, two or three challenges? Really. I know you guys are gonna dominate this game."

Now if someone had said this to me, I would've laughed it off and jokingly told them that they were going down. But all Jacques and Josee did was thank me and smile, and I saw a dark look in their eyes. If they had told me right that minute that I would be out of the game before I could blink, I would have believed it.

**This is the point where the Ice Dancers really began to step up their game. Up to this point, I was wondering how long it would take them to do something properly villainous, but then, the boomerang. And then things started falling into place.**


	75. Chapter 75: Ice Queen of Boomerangs

**Right, let's keep going. We're getting closer to my home, actually...but the next location is where my sister, brother, nieces and cousins live! Shoutout to everyone, especially Annie and Stella – I love you two cuties!**

**Yeah, sorry. I get a bit gushy about my nieces. I had to write an assignment on them for uni last semester (no, seriously) and that was not hard work at all. And I saw them last month, and I couldn't believe how much they'd grown in three months!**

**Thanks for your great reviews, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Gage the Hedgehog, Bloodylilcorpse and the guest reviewer.**

We got an afternoon in Zimbabwe, and it was nice and sunny. Since I really hadn't spent a lot of time with the Surfers, I spent the afternoon hanging out and chilling with them, as did Bridgette. We exchanged scraps of stories we'd heard from other teams and other random things. In fact, the only thing I kept a secret was Carrie's crush on Devin, and only because I'd promised not to tell.

The next day, MacArthur started doing stretches, calling out "Time to warm up the glutes!" while Sanders took the first tip.

"We're going to Australia!" she exclaimed. "Yes!"

Melbourne, Victoria to be exact. It was one of the main cities in the country. So we had to get on the bus quickly.

Of course, the Ice Dancers were the last to board, but boy did they make an entrance. They were wearing new black outfits, and they leapt onto the bus, waving to the camera.

"Wow!" I exclaimed as they passed us. "You can tell that you two are getting serious now. You look amazing in black!"

In the seat behind us, Junior was saying to Dwayne sternly "Stick with me today. I don't want you getting lost again, okay?" Dwayne started to splutter, not sure how to answer that major role-reversal.

I made a quick confessional. "I don't know about Junior's 'chest hair' thing, but smooth or hairy, he's more of a man than most people would give him credit for. Speaking of men, DJ, if you're watching this, I miss you so much!" I blew a kiss to the camera. "Next time you see me, I'll have two-fifty hundred grand!"

We were all on the same flight, so we all heard Don's voice on the intercom at the same time. "Attention, teams!" A picture of a tip with a red symbol on it appeared. "This is a boomerang! Find one attached to your travel tip and you can use it at the next Don Box to send another team back to repeat the last challenge!" Apparently, there was more than one to be found, but who knew who would get them?

"Wow." I murmured to Bridgette. "I hope we get one."

"If we do, I hope we're one of the leading teams." she muttered back. "Sending back a team who isn't doing well would NOT be fun."

At that moment, Carrie came up to me and said in a low voice, "Hey. I'm going to tell him."  
She didn't need to say any more. "Seriously? That's great!"

Carrie smiled. "I just told Kitty, and she thinks it's good, too."

"Have you worked out what you're going to say?" I asked.

Carrie nodded. "I just have to wait for the right moment, but it'll be during this challenge."

After she left, Bridgette whispered to me "What was that about? Is Carrie going to admit how she really feels?"

I stared at her. "You _knew_? She doesn't know you know, right?"

Bridgette shook her head. "I hung out with them long enough to notice the way she looks at Devin. I'm guessing you said nothing because you were sworn to secrecy."

I nodded. "Kitty noticed it first." I explained. "She's been encouraging Carrie to tell Devin since."

When we got to the airport, the travel tip, sadly, didn't have a boomerang attached. But as we heard, we were meant to go to Geelong Maximum Security Prison.

According to the tip, boomerangs could only be used at the next Don Box, anyway. I hoped no one would be there when we arrived. And as a bonus, the winning team got to make a phone call home.

"Anyone you wanna call?" I asked Bridgette as we got into a taxi.

Bridgette considered. "I'm guessing that you want to call DJ." she said. "I'm all right with that."

"You sure?"

"Yes. I at least get to see my boyfriend while we're in this. You don't get to see DJ, and I can tell you miss him – besides, he's my friend, too. I'd like to talk to him."

Once we got to Geelong, we were greeted by officers of the law who instantly dragged us into a cell.

"What does the tip say to do next?" I asked.

Bridgette checked. "There's one method of escape. Either hidden tools, trapdoors, tunnels, or bars. Then we can get to the next Don Box."

"It wasn't personal!" I could hear MacArthur calling from another cell further up. "I mean, yeah, it was _your _face I punched in, but I still respect you as a fellow officer, cause you only cried a little."

Further down, I heard faint yelling from Chet and Lorenzo. Seriously, how had those two stayed in the game so long when all they did was fight?

"Hey, why don't you check bars and tools, and I look for tunnels and trapdoors?" I suggested. But while we were in the middle of that, we heard a sound from further up, and I looked out.

"Look!" I hissed. "The Ice Dancers are out!"

I could hear Sanders' voice, too. She was obviously trying to get them to help her team out.

"One condition." I heard Josee say smoothly. "I want to hear your partner say that ice dancing is the best sport in the world."

"You think it's a sport?" MacArthur's loud voice said. There was a short pause, before we finally heard her admit it.

"And who is the best ice dancer?" Josee continued. Even from a distance, I could see how much she was enjoying this.

"You are." MacArthur answered, and then, like she really meant it. "You are the best ice dancer in the world!"

"That is so nice of you to say." Josee answered, and she and Jacques continued down the passageway. "Bye-bye!"

"You promised to help us!" Sanders protested.

"I am. I'm helping you go home."

Well, that proved a lot – namely, that Josee would sell out anyone to win. But she and Jacques hated the Police Cadets. And they might be competitors, but I had tried to be friends with them. If I could find an easy out, I'd do it.

"Hey, Jacques!" I called. "I know you're kind of busy right now, but you think you could help us find a way out? And before you ask why you should help us, we're not going to stop you from winning. Just tell us how to get out, and we'll do it. Then you can move on while we find our way out." I asked Jacques in particular because I liked him better, and he generally seemed like the kinder, calmer one of the team. Unfortunately, that didn't make him the leader of the team.

Jacques looked at Josee. She considered it, then she mouthed something, so quickly that I didn't understand it.

Jacques looked back at me, and then said "We got out by punching through the bars. Have you tried that?"

Bridgette and I exchanged glances. "Did you try bars?" I asked.

"Not yet."

So we both slammed against the bars on our door, pushing at them, shoving, and...they bent enough for us to squeeze through.

"Thanks, guys!" I called, since they were already halfway down the passageway by that time. We headed for the next Don Box.

And that was when we learned that my people skills weren't so effective after all. The Ice Dancers were waiting there for us, and as we reached for our tip, Josee stopped us.

"I'm sorry that it has to be your team, but you should have known better." she said with an evil smirk on her face. She pulled a tip out of her pocket, and I saw a flash of red. "You two have been boomeranged." she said. "I suggest you get going if you want to escape a second time."

I couldn't believe it! "I...I mean...you...I tried to be friends with you, both of you!" I cried. "And now you betray us like this? Why?"  
"Because we're going to win the gold." Josee said simply, and she was about to leave when...

She tripped, getting mud all over her face, and another voice started laughing.

"Who laughed?" Josee demanded.

"I believe you mean, whom laughed." MacArthur and Sanders were standing right behind us, having just arrived. Josee threw a glob of mud at the bulky cadet and started laughing herself.

MacArthur scowled. "You just messed with the wrong cadet." She started forward, and Bridgette and I backed away, ready to go back to the prison. That's how we didn't see the other boomeranged team until they were locked in an especially dark and creepy cell with us.

Bridgette glared at the French-Canadian athletes. "What happened to you two?"

"The Police Cadets." Josee scowled, her voice rising. "They boomeranged us!"

I couldn't help chuckling. "Okay, look, I'm sorry, but after you tricked them and then betrayed us, it's kind of ironic that they did the same to you."

Josee glared at me, but then Jacques spoke up. "Perhaps a truce is in order?"

Bridgette nodded. "We do have to work together to get out of here."

I paused. "Right. But no more tricks. In fact, if you don't mess with us for the rest of the competiton, I'll just forget that you betrayed us." After all, messing with us for the competiton's sake was nothing compared to hurting my friends for the sake of competiton (note that they didn't actually hurt us). That, I couldn't forgive. But this was pretty minor in comparison.

The Ice Dancers nodded, and I held out my hand to Josee. "Shake on it." She did so, with her other hand in view so I could see she wasn't crossing her fingers.

"Okay, let's get started." I said. "Josee, can you check the bars? Bridgette, tools OK? Jacques, can you look for tunnels? And I'll look for trapdoors."

Everyone got to work. But actually, it was Bridgette who found the trapdoor. "Look up!"

There was a tiny square of sunlight shining down. We'd have to get on each other's shoulders to reach it, but it was the only escape we had. We made a column. Josee, being the lightest, was on top, followed by me, then Bridgette, then Jacques, since he was the tallest.

Josee leapt up, then held out her hands. I grabbed them, and she pulled me up. Finally, Jacques had to throw Bridgette up for Josee and I to each grab one of her hands and pull her up. One more repeat of the process, and all of us were out.

As a matter of fact, Bridgette and I were still last. Both of us had to build a raft and paddle to the Chill Zone, and the Ice Dancers were just faster than us.  
"Beach Babes, I'm very sad now." Don said. "You two make a great team. I wish you nothing but the best...in the next round because this is a non-elimination round!"

Bridgette and I gave a sigh of relief and high-fived.  
"Thanks, Don!" I smiled, and went to join the other teams, then I stopped and frowned. For some reason, Devin had a paper bag over his head, and I could hear crying sounds from inside.

"What's up?" I asked Carrie.

"We won, and Devin called Shelley." she whispered. "She dumped him for her tennis instructor...I guess telling him how I feel will have to wait."

"Wow." I muttered. "Poor guy. But the good thing is now, once he's over everything, he'll finally notice you and he won't have a girlfriend to hold him back."

Carrie managed a smile. "I know. I sort of feel happy about it, but I know I shouldn't."

Was I glad I didn't have that many problems in my love life!

**So, the Ice Dancers finally showed their true colours. Elle doesn't really hate them right now – in fact, she's sort of still likes Jacques a little bit, but she actively dislikes Josee. She's not going to stop being friendly, but she's on her guard from now on.**


	76. Chapter 76: Bunnies In A Bag

**Okay. Let's keep moving. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Bloodylilcorpse and Gage the Hedgehog.**

We still had an afternoon in Melbourne to relax and chill out. I actually went up to the Cadets and whispered "Hey. Nice work with the boomerang. I saw them double-crossing you earlier."

"You've got my partner to thank for that." MacArthur grinned, gesturing.

Sanders smiled, too. "I'd said that we needed to assess the situation and pick a team based on that if we got the boomerang, but this one," she gave her partner a half-fond, half-exasperated look, "Kept saying we had to use it on the Ice Dancers. I guess we were both right."

We did see some differences between other teams. Chet and Lorenzo had stopped hating each other and were now the best of friends. Devin spent the whole night crying his eyes out over Shelley. Emma and Noah were closer than ever, while Kitty whispered to Bridgette and I that although it was good to see her older sister happy, she was worried that it would affect their chances in the competiton. And finally, Stephanie and Ryan, while still arguing, seemed to have this weird thing when they'd sometimes look at each other lovingly for seconds, or Ryan would say something complimentary. Honestly, were they broken up or not?

It was a good thing the next challenge was simple. The Best Friends were up first, and Carrie was desperately trying to comfort her friend. "Come on, it's not the end of the world. You've got so many people who care about you."

Devin stopped crying. "Hey, you're right! I mean, I bet she didn't even dump me. I probably misheard her!"  
"Uh..." Carrie began, but Devin was too busy denying that Shelley had dumped him to listen. The first stage of grief had begun.

The second team stepped up. "Move over!" Chet snapped at Carrie. "Me and my awesome bro gotta go!"

So anyway...the challenge. We had an All-In. We had to capture ten rabbits on a field and turn them in to a farmer who would give us our next tip. And as a bonus, if we found the one albino bunny, we could turn that in and move on. A boring challenge? Yeah. But easy? Hardly. At least we didn't have to think about it.

Well, there were some strategies. "Can I take some lettuce from the farm to attract the bunnies?" I asked the farmer. "I figure that one lettuce is a small price to pay for millions of crops ruined by rabbits."

Put that way, the farmer reluctantly let me.

But no one could beat Ennui. The bunnies clung to him. "Um, Crimson, it's happening again." he said, and if I didn't know better, I'd think he sounded worried.

I nudged Bridgette. "Check out Ennui! It must be torture, having something cute, but he's single-handedly dominating this."

We had to catch rabbits the old-fashioned way, running after them.

Carrie was still concerned about Devin, so while Bridgette went after the tenth rabbit and I kept hold of the first nine, I explained what was going on. "Devin's just in the first stage of heartbreak." I explained. "It's pretty much like the five stages of grief. Do you know them?"

Carrie shook her head.

"Well, have you ever read the book _Cleo _by Helen Brown?" I asked. "It was in there, when Helen's son was hit by a car and killed. Anyway, right now, Devin's in Stage 1: Denial. Next up, he'll go into Anger, followed by Bargaining, then Depression, and finally Acceptance."

"So if I want him to get over Shelley faster..." Carrie said slowly, "I should make him get mad at her!"

"No, that's not what I meant!" I said quickly, but Carrie wasn't listening.

"Thanks, Elle!" she said, picking up her sack and running after another rabbit.

At that moment, Bridgette came back, carefully holding our last rabbit. "Well, that's ten." she said. "Let's jet!"

Yeah, that didn't mean actually jet. But the tip said that we actually had to fly a glider to the next Chill Zone...nearly four hours away in New Zealand.

Actually, we were one of the earlier teams to get to the Land of the Long White Cloud. Bridgette took the controls, while I directed, same as in Zimbabwe.

"Know anything about New Zealand?" I asked. "I've heard bits, but it sounds really weird. And not exotic like Australia."

Bridgette considered. "I know there's a lot of really interesting birds there. And they have a native lizard called a tuatara, also, which is really rare. They used to have a bird called a moa that died out. That's about all I know...apart from the kiwi bird, but then, New Zealanders call themselves Kiwis a lot, so that's well known."

"I know that New Zealand was a British colony at one point." I said thoughtfully. "And that they created that thing called hokey-pokey that's made out of golden syrup. And that the people who first lived there are called the...Maori?" Pronounced Mow (rhyming with wow) ree.

We landed a few metres away from the Chill Zone, surrounded by snow-topped mountains. Don was waiting for us there. "Beach Babes," he greeted us, "You're in third place!"

"All right!" I high-fived Bridgette. That was the good news.

The bad news was that the Ice Dancers had come in first. The Goths were second, but they were all right. However, on closer inspection, I realized they had a new member.

"You brought a rabbit along?" I frowned. "Isn't that against custom rules? And I thought you hated cute cuddly creatures."

"This is Loki." Crimson spoke up. "He's part of our team now."

"We named him after the dark Norse god," Ennui elaborated, "Because he brings famine."

I smiled uncertainly. "Interesting flipside. Something that looks cute destroys the livelihood of innocent Aussies. Still, Loki looks just like you guys now. Pretty awesome."

"That's really sweet." Bridgette whispered to me when I came back. "Them adopting a rabbit, I mean. I could've sworn that those two had no emotion, but they've proved they do."

"They're not nice, but they're not mean." I concluded. "I heard they were dating, so they obviously so feel something for each other. And they don't have to show any expression for me to know that they already have a strong bond with this Loki."

There was finally an elimination that day. Naturally, because the Stepbrothers had become friends and had lost a lot of competitivity into the bargain, they arrived at the Chill Zone last. They were pretty mad, but they left with their new best friend – each other. So yeah...at least they got something out of their time on the show.

We had gotten to New Zealand in the afternoon, and it was two hours ahead of Australia, so while it was early there, it was already starting to get dark. Just like in Brazil, I let Geoff and Brody come with Bridgette and I to find a restaurant in the small towns surrounding the mountains. Yeah, there actually were a few – we ended up at a cosy little Indian place specialising in biryani.

"So," I said to the boys, "Have you guys noticed what the Ice Dancers are like right now?"

Geoff shrugged. "They seem all right. Maybe a bit competitive, but we haven't really talked to them."

"We have." Bridgette said grimly. "They used a boomerang on us in Melbourne, after helping us escape the prison."

"MacArthur hates them." Brody spoke up. "She found out she'd been chasing a fake albino, and she thinks they were behind it."

"Come to think of it," Geoff said slowly, "Our sack of bunnies disappeared while we were helping them. And the Ice Dancers had left by then. Wonder if they had something to do with that?"

I gave a nod. "Sounds like it. So we better keep on our guard. They're the Heathers of this season, that team you cannot trust. I'm not going to be mean to them or anything, but I need to make sure to keep out of their way during the challenges."

**Sorry about how short this chapter is, especially compared to the last one. Catching rabbits is not exactly the most fun thing to write about. Also, reference to **_**Cleo: How A Small Black Cat Helped Heal A Family. **_**It's absolutely beautiful, and even though I knew Sam, Helen's eldest son, was going to be run over early on, I cried when it happened in the book. Read it, especially if you love cats or family stories. I do know the family personally, but I've read reviews on Amazon and most people seem to love it. And yeah, I changed stages of heartbreak to five, but Devin never went through seven stages, and they do match the stages Helen described in the book.**


	77. Chapter 77: It's Called A Haka

**Now, YES! New Zealand, my country, New Zealand, my home. From the mountains to the sea, it means so much to me...New Zealand, the place I love to be.**

**Okay, I'll stop the lyrics quoting and just say, yes, I'm a New Zealander. And by the way, I actually put a bit of reality to the haka in this story. The creators just couldn't be bothered animating what they actually do, or learning the Maori in it, when just about every boy in New Zealand has to learn how to perform the haka, and the All Blacks rugby team still do it. And I still remember all my Maori colours and how to greet people. Tena koutou, readers. Kia ora! (That means 'hello everyone' and 'hi').**

**Thanks for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog and Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart.**

New Zealand was actually very pretty, but boy was it cold! And that's coming from a Canadian girl. The mountains were freezing. "Is it like this in all of New Zealand?" I asked Kitty. "Does it say on your phone?"

Kitty flipped her SmartPhone open and looked on Google Chrome. "Nope." she said. "We're in the South Island, in the Canterbury area. It's usually colder here. The North Island is warm. The low iin Auckland today is twelve degrees Celcius, and the high is nineteen. That's high up in the North Island."

"Wow!" I said, impressed. "I wish we landed there."

Kitty shrugged. "It's not really the place for tourism. I looked it up, and there's a place called Rotorua a few hours from Auckland that's famous for natural hot rivers and lakes, and boiling mud. And this Maori place set up, but I guess we're in it for the scenery."

That was just before the challenge began when we had that conversation. It was time to get our first travel tip. Well, okay, not us. The Ice Dancers, but we just had to wait until they and the Goths had grabbed theirs.

Bridgette picked up the tip. "'Go-go on the loco'?"

I looked over her shoulder. "We have to climb up a hill to a train station and take the train further up to the next Don Box." I shrugged. "Easy."

It was a good thing we could both run. We passed the Goths.

Behind us, we heard two more voices. "Faster, Ryan! We're gaining on them!"

"I'm not slowing you down! They are!"

"Get out of our way, Beach Bimbos!" Stephanie yelled up at us.

I pointed up at the Ice Dancers. "They're the ones that are in our way, but we're not yelling at them about it."

Stephanie scowled and yelled at them "Move it, Ice Nerds, your frozen butts are in everyone's way!"  
"What are you going to do about it?" Josee replied coolly. "Yell some more? Take your best shot, I may turn the other cheek." She pointed to her, um...other cheeks.

I couldn't help a giggle escaping, and while Stephanie shot a death glare at me, I picked up the pace and grinned at Josee. Hey, I may dislike her, but I wasn't stupid enough to let her know I hadn't forgotten the boomerang incident.

Ryan was laughing too, and I heard Stephanie snap "That is not how you support your partner, Ryan!"

"Double time, Bridge!" I said. "We need to lose those two!" We sped up, and ended up second to the train station. I mean, the Haters and Goths managed to catch up and ended up on the same train as us and the Ice Dancers, but we still had a lead on six teams.

When the train got to the station, Bridgette and I were first out, and I grabbed the tip. "It's an Either-Or. 'Jump down or jump around'."

"What does that mean?" Bridgette asked.

"It means bungy jump and grab a fish, or watch some locals do the traditional Maori haka and then do it ourselves." I looked up. "I know bungy jumping could be fun, but please, can we do the haka instead? I'm not into heights, but I know we can both dance. How hard can the haka be? You can choose the next time we get an Either-Or."

Bridgette shrugged. "Okay. I'm interested to learn the haka, too."

Unfortunately, the Ice Dancers beat us to the place, so they got to try it first.

The locals showed us both the...er, dance. As they did, they yelled out a war chant in Maori. "_Ka mate, ka mate, ka ora, ka ora! Ka mate, ka mate, ka ora, ka ora... (_**A/N**_**: **_**I'm skipping the middle, because the haka is pretty repetitive, but you'll see Bridgette and Elle perform some of it later – you can look up the lyrics on Wikipedia**) _whiti te ra! Hie!" _they finished (Later on, I found out that the war chant was, in short "I may live, I may die, this is the man who made the sun shine, a step upward, the sun shines").

"Hukana!" the Maori one called out, and they stuck out their tongues, with ferocious expressions on their faces.

The Ice Dancers did it perfectly, of course. It may not have been a dance with the grace and charm they were used to, but they managed to scare us. They could make terrifying faces when they wanted to.

The two locals clapped. "Try it on skates some time," Josee suggested, "Then it might actually be impressive." She turned to Jacques. "Come on! Let's go be champions!"

As they headed for the Chill Zone, I turned to the men. "Don't take any notice of what she said. Your haka is plenty impressive. I just hope we don't screw up."

Bridgette and I tried hard, but it wasn't easy to remember all of those Maori words. By the time we were on our third attempt, the Best Friends had arrived, and I noticed Devin looked crazy mad.

We finally got it right, this time. "_A upane! Ka upane! A upane, whiti te ra! Hie!" _Bridgette and I chanted together, glaring at the camera crew.

The locals smiled, although they didn't clap like they had for the Ice Dancers. "Thank you!" I called, and as I passed Carrie, I whispered "He's in Stage 2?"

Carrie nodded with a smile. "What's Stage 3 again?"

"Bargaining." I told her. "When he stops being mad, he'll be desperate to do anything to make Shelley take him back. But DON'T say anything to him, please! Let him get over her on his own, then make your move."

Then Bridgette and I ran all the way to the Chill Zone.

Don greeted us with a "Beach Babes, you're in second place!"

I heaved a sigh. "Let me guess who took first..." But I pasted on a smile and went to greet the winners, who were currently enjoying iced drinks. "Hey, gold again? I guess I was right, what I said in Zimbabwe. You guys are dominating this game."

Both Ice Dancers smiled when I said that, but I could see a difference. Jacques' smile was small and genuine, like he was saying "Aw, you're giving me way too much credit." Josee gave me her stage smile, the one she switched on for the cameras, and I knew it was fake.

The Reality TV Pros arrived last, just after the Sisters. "I don't know what kind of dictionary you use," Noah said to them, "But its definition of 'alliance' is way off."

Emma frowned. "I'm sorry, Noah. This is what I was afraid of! I like you, a lot, but I can't be with you. Not on this show."

As she and Kitty walked away, Noah's mouth fell open, and he collapsed to the ground.

I had a feeling that would be the last we heard from him for a while, unless Emma came back to him.

But it was a non-elimination round, so they got to stay.

Oh yeah, and Dwayne made a blunder. He got a Maori tattoo to appear cool to Junior, but then the youngest competitor checked the tattoo magazine he had on him. "Dad, according to this magazine, only _women_ get that tattoo!"

Still, it was only noon by the time everyone arrived, so we could just do whatever we wanted. So after the Ice Dancers had finished enjoying their first place treatment, I asked them if they wanted to come out with me. "Timeru is like twenty minutes away. Wanna come?"

"No, thank you." Josee said in a superior tone.

I didn't give up. "Jacques?"

Jacques considered, and then said "If you want me to join you, Elle, then I will."

I laughed. "No duh I want you to! If I hadn't, I wouldn't have asked. I mean, you don't see me asking Stephanie to hang out with me!" Since both Haters were out of earshot, I figured it was safe to say that. I didn't want Stephanie yelling at me, and no doubt Ryan would say he agreed with me and it would start another argument between them.

It was actually good to get Jacques on his own. I didn't constantly feel like I was looking over my shoulder, waiting to be stabbed in the back (I had started to get that feeling every time I spoke to Josee). With Jacques, I felt like I could talk to him about random stuff as we hung out.

Eventually, we went to a coffee shop. "I have to drink a lot of coffee." Jacques admitted to me. "I have to get up so early to practice routines and it's hard to keep my eyes open some nights, that coffee is the only thing keepng me awake."

I couldn't help sighing at him. "Is that just part of being an ice dancer?"

"Well, mostly, but Josee and I work harder than most." Jacques said.

"And backstab more than most." I muttered, but Jacques heard me.

"I _am _sorry about what happened in Melbourne, you know." he said. "But it was necessary to get further in the game. And besides, I would have rather sent back another team, but Josee figured helping you get out the first time would give us an excuse to use our boomerang."

I sighed again. "You guys are ruthless."

Jacques shot me an offended look. "_I'm_ not, Elle. Josee is a little too winning-obsessed, but I want to keep playing fair, even though I desperately want to win. I just can't stop her from using underhanded tactics."

I gave a sigh. "I should be used to people like her by now. Every reality show I've been on, there's always been just one person who's too competitive." I looked up at Jacques. "I'm determined to win this, too. But Bridgette and I refuse to play unfairly. That's why we're trying to be friendly to everyone – because we genuinely want to make friends on this show."

I guess I can say that New Zealand was definitely a good location. I mean, I didn't really expect to get into the top three twice in a row! From here on in, I was determined to stay there.

**A bit of an unreal standard, Elle. We'll come back soon!**


	78. Chapter 78: Babe Ranch

**Let's keep moving! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart and Gage the Hedgehog.**

Even though I'd liked New Zealand, it was good to move on. We were in the coldest part of New Zealand, and although it definitely could've been worse, I didn't really want goosebumps.

Of course, we had to wait for Jacques and Josee to grab the first travel tip, but then it was our turn. Bridgette picked it up. "Head Smashed-In Buffalo Jump?" she frowned. "It's in Alberta."

I shrugged. "Weird name, but whatever. What is it, anyway?"

Bridgette read down. "We have to go to a dude ranch there."

We both called for a taxi and asked to go to the airport nearest, in Christchurch. Luckily, we were third to the airport and got the first flight out to Alberta. There was only enough room for twelve of us, so the last four teams were left to get the next flight out.

I was checking through the Air New Zealand flight entertainment, when I found...  
"Hey, Bridge, look! Total Drama's on here!"

"Which season?"

I looked through it. "A couple of All-Stars episodes...and the whole of Pahkitew Island." I sighed. "Damn it! They have the one where Courtney betrayed Gwen and me! Worst memory that season, except when Mal was trying to drown Zoey, but that's besides the point." I clicked on the first episode of PI, and watched all thirteen episodes on the flight.

There was a pick-up truck waiting for each team. Bridgette and I were the last team out, but at least there were four teams way behind, so we still had almost a guarantee that we wouldn't be going home.

I drove and Bridgette directed, this time. Actually, we got there fourth. Geoff and Brody were already onto the challenge, Stephanie was stressing about it while Ryan had started on it, Crimson and Ennui had just gotten started, and Devin and Carrie were just getting the tip.

It was an All-In – the two of us had to both eat a giant saucepan of pork and beans (obviously, I took all of the pork). We had to really shovel it all into our mouths, both spoons at the ready. Ew. No, seriously. Once you'd had about twenty minutes of eating the same food, that was enough. We got slower, but we were still eating.

Geoff and Brody, of course, were finished earlier, and we heard them looking at the tip. It turned out to be a Random Botch – same as in Romania when one of us had to carry the coffin and the other had to stay in the coffin. Whoever wasn't holding the tip had to do the challenge. This one was riding a mechanical bull, and staying on for eight seconds.

"You take the tip." Bridgette offered. "I have okay balance. As long as I hang on, I can do it."

I shrugged and nodded, still forcing unwanted food down my throat, taking the tip the minute it was visible. Yeah, we still had a few spoonfuls, but I took care of those pretty quickly. That was the good news.

The bad news was, everyone had arrived by then. MacArthur was scarfing down her pot of pork and beans and wouldn't let Sanders have any, even though not doing the challenge together would get them penalized (eventually, Sanders had to make out that someone was stealing from the cash register to distract MacArthur and get a spoonful). Owen was eating and feeding a motionless, heartbroken Noah. Brody was failing at the mechanical bull for the ninth time.

Stephanie was still staring at the pot. "Come on, babe." Ryan encouraged her. "You can do this! You're stronger and scarier than anyone I know!"

I couldn't help but think that when he said that, Stephanie's face softened, just for a moment. But it didn't matter, Stephanie couldn't eat any of the food until Ryan called her a "loser" for it. She immediately started eating like crazy.

We managed to take our first turn just before Devin took one. Bridgette didn't succeed that time, though. In fact, while it looked easy, it was super tricky to stay on. But then Crimson took her first go, and she didn't even need to hang on. The Goths were in first place.

Stephanie and Ryan had a little argument over who would grab the tip, while Bridgette was waiting for her second turn. Brody finally managed the bull on his eleventh try. It was something to do with wearing Geoff's cowboy hat, so I had an idea.

"Hey, wait up." I said just before the guys could take off. "Cause of our alliance and everything..." I paused. "Can Bridgette borrow the hat?"

Geoff smiled. "Course she can! It's not like she hasn't worn it before." Bridgette grinned as Brody handed her the hat. Then she jumped on the bull, hung on tight, and...

fell off in seven seconds.

The guys decided to go, so we'd give the hat back later, and Bridgette finished on her next try, but only after Devin, and then Stephanie had succeeded, too (although the Haters got to the Chill Zone before the Best Friends). So we were running to the Chill Zone, and then...

"Beach Babes." Don greeted us. "You're in fourth place...or _would _be in fourth place. You have a ten minute penalty."

"Why?" I gasped. "We didn't break any rules."

Don frowned disapprovingly at us. "You decided who would take the tip in advance, meaning that wasn't a random Botch."

I groaned. "All right." There wasn't much we could do, apart from hope no one else arrived...or at least, that we'd be able to be something other than last.

The Goths turned up five minutes later. Apparently they'd found a skull rotting in the sun and stopped to look at it, therefore losing first place to Geoff and Brody. Oh well.

Eventually, the Police Cadets turned up, and our penalty ended, putting us in sixth place, just ahead of the Sisters. The Ice Dancers and the Reality TV Pros did turn up in eighth and ninth place.

This was Emma's cue. She went to Noah and apologized for breaking him. "I didn't mean to. I still really like you and I want us to be together."

It worked. Noah seemed to come to and said "You...you do?"

"Yes." Emma said. "I just – I can't do the romance thing until the race is over. But after I win, you and I are so on."

Noah smiled genuinely, a rare sight. "Great! So when one of us wins..."

Emma scowled. "Are you not listening? When MY team wins!"

I took a break in the confessional. "I think Emma's right to hold off on dating Noah until the race is over. This race made Stephanie and Ryan break up...except I get the feeling that they still like each other and might end up getting back together." That gave me a thought. "Maybe I should give them a little push..."

Dwayne and Junior were last to the Chill Zone, and so they got eliminated. Dwayne looked disappointed, but his son gave him a hug. "Thanks for this, Dad. It was a lot of fun."

I went up to Ryan as the two of them walked off, practically into the sunset. "Hey, Ryan? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Stephanie gave me a suspicious look, but Ryan smiled and said "Sure, Elle." I led him a little way away from the rest of the group.

"I wanted to ask you about Stephanie." I said, not beating around the bush. "I know you guys have argued ever since you broke up, but...well, do you _really _hate her? I keep catching you two being nice, or hugging when you win something, or staring into each other's eyes..."

Ryan gave a sigh. "All right, all right. Truth be told, I kind of still like her. But there's no way I'm getting back with her unless she apologizes for being so-"

"Yeah, I get it." I said bluntly. "Look, what if I talk to Stephanie later on, find out how she feels, then let you know? Truthfully, I know you guys are doing great in the race, but it's the heat of the competition that drove you apart. If you get eliminated while still communicating to Stephanie that you care about her, she'll want to get back with you if she has any feelings left for you."

Ryan looked doubtful. "Maybe. But you don't know Stephanie like I do. Even if you talk to her and she does want me back, she'll tell you that she hates me. She's stubborn."

"Everyone has their limit." I said confidently. "Trust me, Ryan. Four seasons of Total Drama left me with tons of ways to manipulate people. If Duncan can get Courtney to kiss him when she kept insisting he wasn't her type, and if Alejandro and Heather can actually become a couple in spite of being rivals, making Stephanie admit she still has feelings for you should be easy."

I was sure to wait for a few hours before asking Stephanie if I could talk to her. It was dark by then. Stephanie was still looking at me suspiciously, but agreed. As we walked away, I looked over at Ryan and winked. He returned the wink and I quickly turned back, to see Stephanie had noticed and was now glaring. I shrugged at her and we found a place far enough so no one else could hear.

"Okay, let's talk." Stephanie said fiercely. "What were you saying to _my _partner earlier today, huh?"

I was at a loss. I hadn't expected her to attack me like that. "Um...random stuff." I bluffed. "Anyway, what a coincidence. I was going to ask you about your partner. Like, if you hate him, why do you sometimes stare at him like he's the hottest thing ever?"

Stephanie hesitated, looking pretty thrown by my question. Finally, she answered. "Because he _is _hot. You don't have to like someone to like looking at them."

"And if Ryan wanted you back after this competiton was over..." I persisted.

"Why would you even ask me that?" Stephanie scowled. "I hate him, and I always will. And he hates me. Hating really works with us."

"And that's because of the competiton." I pointed out. "What was it like, you and Ryan, before the race started?"

Stephanie actually considered. "Oh wow, it was like...like paradise. We agreed on _everything, _and we practically _thought_ in sync." Her eyes went all dreamy for a few seconds, before she seemed to wake up and scowled again. "It doesn't matter, though. We are in the race, and we hate each other."

"Sure." I shrugged, walking away. But as I did, I said over my shoulder "Men like Ryan don't come around every lifetime, Steph. If you find someone who supports you even when they hate you, you might want to consider them keepers."

I don't know if my words had an effect. I think they did. When I told Bridgette about it, she laughed. "So you're matchmaking again? Good luck."  
"Again?" I frowned.

"On the Internet, Sierra's 'Couples" blog defined you as a "Shipper On Deck". That means when you know about a potential relationship, you support it. Remember how you warned me that Geoff wasn't an expert at flirting? And you supported Gwen and Trent together back in that season, too. As a matter of fact, didn't you also find it good when Alejandro finally got with Heather?"

"Hey, there was more than one reason why that was good, and it was more about other women that could get hurt if he wasn't in a real relationship." I smiled. "But I guess I am being a Shipper On Deck for Ryan and Stephanie. And I will definitely support Noah and Emma."

Bridgette grinned back. "On the subject of Sierra, any pairings you think might happen? She predicts things, like she knew about Gwen and Duncan, and if you ask Kitty to check it out on her SmartPhone, she's probably predicting stuff for this show, too."

I paused. "As for my predictions...well, with Shelley having dumped Devin, Carrie's in with a chance at dating him again. Easy. And I don't know if you've noticed, but I think Brody has a thing for MacArthur."

Bridgette giggled. "Oh, you should've heard it! When you guys were diving for rings, Brody cheered for MacArthur until Sanders called him out on it, and only then he encouraged Geoff."

On the whole, I had fun in Alberta. One of our easiest trips yet, in spite of the penalty.

**You might've guessed that there's a plot point I want to wrap up earlier than usual. Elle's on it!**


	79. Chapter 79: Love Versus Loss

**Let's keep going! The Arctic Circle! Thank you for reviewing, Elizabeth Life Stone and Gage the Hedgehog.**

I reported back to Ryan that Stephanie was being stubborn, but I could tell that she still felt something for him. "I think she might've even been jealous that I talked to you privately." I said. "Maybe she thought I was telling you that I liked you or something." I laughed. "Even though I have a boyfriend."

Ryan laughed too. "To be honest, Elle, I think there's someone on this show who would be pretty upset to hear that you're taken."

I stopped laughing. "What? Who?"

"It's not my place to tell you." Ryan said. "If he really does want you, he'll talk to you himself."

I gave a sigh. "Ryan, not knowing is going to drive me crazy!"

"Just be patient." Ryan said annoyingly. "I'm not even sure that I'm right, so I shouldn't really have told you anything anyway."

But there was no time to pick out who Ryan was talking about. We had a place to go to and a challenge to do! This time, we were on our way to the Arctic Circle. Not only that, but there was another boomerang in play.

"I just hope the Ice Dancers don't get this one." I remarked to Bridgette while we were stuck on the third flight (it was two teams per flight, which meant the Reality TV Pros were WAY behind).

"I know." Bridgette agreed. "I mean, they probably wouldn't use it on us, but do they really need it? They've won more challenges than anyone. If anyone besides us or the guys got it, I'd want it to go to a team that really needs an advantage."

"Noah and Owen?" I suggested. "They definitely need the advantage, now that they've come in almost last twice."

"Although I think that's more because of the whole thing with Emma." Bridgette pointed out. "I think Carrie and Devin need it now. Things are getting unpredictable for them. Have you noticed how Devin's been different in every country since he got dumped?"

I nodded. "Five stages of grief. Denial in Australia, anger in New Zealand, bargaining and desperation in Canada...looks like it's going to be depression next. Tomorrow, we'll move on to a new location, and he'll go to acceptance and move on too."

We were sharing our plane with the Police Cadets. Although, like the Ice Dancers, they were hugely competitive, they were agreeable to just talk to us like normal. Personally, I'd already decided I preferred the quieter, politer Sanders to crude, loud MacArthur, but they were both friendly enough when they weren't fiercely competing, and we got quite friendly with them. Ever since they'd boomeranged the Ice Dancers after they boomeranged us, they had our respect.

This actually wasn't such a bad challenge. We didn't get a boomerang, but we got another Botch or Watch. "I'm up." I said.

"But...didn't you do the last Botch or Watch?" Bridgette frowned.

"Yeah, but it says whoever didn't ride the bull in Alberta has to do this." I explained. "I have to find hoops in the snow and toss them onto the horn of a narwhal. Weird."  
But we proceeded. Bridgette wasn't allowed to help me dig for the rings, so she stood back as I dug. Geoff was still looking for one, while Loki was helping Ennui dig. Then a narwhal popped up right next to them, and Ennui just had to drop it onto them, making everyone else stare in awe (except Stephanie and Ryan, who had already done the challenge and left).

I frowned. "First rabbits fall in love with Ennui, and now a narwhal just lets him finish this thing?" I said to the camera. "Wow. Not to sound game-obsessed or anything, but it might not be a bad idea to see if I can get closer to him and Crimson. Problem is, being friendly to them seems more likely to make them dislike me."

Josee finished just after me. Bridgette and I were running for the snowmobile we'd take to the next Don Box when we heard her say something to Geoff, who was still struggling. "Oh hey, good luck. Hope you don't lose your best friend cause you're so bad at this."

Okay, well, I'd ignored Josee's meanness before, but I wasn't going to let that comment go. I went over to her before she or Jacques started up the snowmobile. Then I smiled at her and said sweetly "Would you mind not insulting my brother? Besides that, it's pointless to antagonize a team who's already losing." Then before either of them could say anything, I raced back to the snowmobile, and the two of us zoomed off.

"Don't let the Ice Dancers catch up to us!" I warned. "They might well want to kill me for what I said."

Bridgette didn't stop watching where she was going as she said "Josee might. Jacques probably doesn't."

I frowned. "Why not?"

"Didn't you notice? Josee looked furious after you said that, but Jacques actually sort of nodded a little bit and than said something to her that made her even angrier."

We passed the Haters on the way there. They were going back.

"Hey, Ryan!" I called. "What happened?"

"Stephanie boomeranged me, which means she boomeranged both of us!" he called. "See you at the finish line!"

I saw Stephanie's look of total jealousy (I'd seen that look before, on Courtney, Heather, Gwen, Harold, Tyler...and even Sierra). If they stayed on the show much longer, I knew I'd see Stephanie break down and realize that she still wanted Ryan.

Bridgette took the next tip from the Don Box. "All-In." she said. "We have to saw blocks of snow and make an igloo-" she was cut off when a certain ponytailed ice skater shoved her (and me) into the snow face first and grabbed their own tip.

"Sorry, Bridge." I sighed. "Josee only did that because she's pissed at me."

Bridgette shrugged. "If you'd said nothing, I would've. I love Geoff just as much as you do, even if it's in a different way."

The next challenge was surprisingly easy, compared to throwing rings over a narwhal. All the teams were working really well together...well, except Devin and Carrie, because Devin wouldn't do anything. Depression – it makes a person want to do nothing.

It got worse. When Geoff and Brody arrived, they were working right next to us. So I was the one to hear Josee say to Geoff "Hey. You need to pick it up. Brody told Jacques that you've been dragging him down."

And Geoff actually believed her. "Is he upset about the snowmobile thing too?"

"Very."

As I continued fitting blocks in for the igloo, I hissed to Geoff "She's a lying cheat who plays mind games. Don't believe everything she says."

But even if I hadn't said that, things would've gone well for them. Everything Josee had said only motivated Geoff to work harder. Soon enough, he and Brody were working harder. And they were approved first, followed by the Ice Dancers.

Also, I found out what the Goths would say to an alliance. Devin offered them one, but Ennui replied "Thanks, but we don't do alliances." Oh well. Still, there was a question I wanted to ask them afterwards.

We were approved just after the Sisters, and ended up in fourth place. Not bad! Geoff and Brody were in first place.

The Police Cadets and the Haters were the last two teams. But when it got down to it...Stephanie and Ryan were facing elimination.

And that was when it happened. I happened to overhear what they were telling the camera, and both of them admitted to still having feelings for each other.

"It was this competition that broke us up." Stephanie admitted.

"Exactly!" agreed Ryan. "If we went someplace where there was no stress, hardship or challenges, I think we'd be happy."

"And together forever." Stephanie added. She looked up at Ryan, and suddenly scowled. "Wait a minute...if you still have feelings for me, why were you hanging out with the beach chick in the skirt?" She meant me.

Ryan looked right back at her and said angrily "Well, if you must know, she was helping me win you back because I'm still in love with you!"

Stephanie looked completely shocked and just managed to say "Ryan...I'm sorry. I guess...I guess I caused our elimination by boomeranging us. I _did _get too competitive. You're right – we should find someplace with less stress. Maybe we could...start over?"

Ryan put his arm around her as they left. "We don't need to start over, babe. I forgive you, and I'm sorry about everything I messed up on, too."

So yeah. It was a little strange to see that they'd end up being Daters again, but satisfying. Maybe I'd miss seeing them around.

**I've seen people saying that this storyline could've been wrapped up at this point, so I just saved us six episodes of Ryan and Stephanie yelling at each other. Or of Stephanie yelling and Ryan just agreeing with everything (although it is funny to watch Stephanie running from a komodo dragon and Ryan sitting around saying "Yes, Stephanie" every time she speaks).**


	80. Chapter 80: Not Daenerys' Kind Of Dragon

**Oh yeah...the Komodo dragon episode. Weird to think that these little reptiles are the only real dragons in the world. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart and Gage the Hedgehog.**

After what Ryan had said about someone having a crush on me, I couldn't help wondering who he'd been talking about. All I knew was that the person was male (Ryan had said 'he', so I knew it wasn't a lesbian crush), and that eliminated some of the teams. Obviously the Sisters and Police Cadets were out. And I could tick our alliance off the list, since I would know if Brody was into me. He would've already said something – and besides, he was so obviously crushing on MacArthur. I didn't even consider Ennui a possibility. Even if he was, there would be no way to tell, and he was dating Crimson anyway. Noah, of course, had Emma, and I already knew that Owen and Izzy had gotten back together after World Tour. That left Devin and Jacques. And since Devin was still in Stage 4 of breaking up...

No. No way.

I didn't know if the camera ever caught me looking at Jacques and wondering if Ryan was right, but I hope not. I decided to dismiss it. It's not like he had to be right. After all, Stephanie had been suspicious of me moving in on her man, but she was wrong.

Anyway, there was no time to think about it. Everyone had to catch a plane to Indonesia. Well, there were three planes, but the narwhals attacked two of them.

"Everyone on the last plane! Right now!" Don yelled. "Move! Move! Move! Hurry!"

The Ice Dancers were last in, in spite of coming second. I'm not sure why they waited, since everyone else got in quickly.

After we landed, everyone immediately jumped into a taxi. The Sisters let the Reality TV Pros share theirs, but everyone else got their own.

And as luck would have it, the one Bridgette and I got reached the Don Box first! But we didn't touch it. A Komodo Dragon was curled up around it.

The Sisters and Reality TV Pros, then the Best Friends, all got there just after us, but none of us wanted to wake the dragon.

Finally, the Surfer Dudes got there. "Just honk, dude, and it'll scatter!" Brody suggested. He pressed the horn on their taxi, and soon enough, the dragon woke up and followed the taxi. We all took our turn at the Don Box.

I took our tip. "All-In." I told Bridgette. "We have to...wait a second! Collect a vial of dragon saliva? Because it has venom? Ew!"

Once we got the vial, we'd give it to a local kid, who had our next travel tip.

"Isn't this a little dangerous?" Owen said uncertainly.

"Danger?" Devin scoffed. "We all die eventually!"

The Goths had just arrived, and they heard Devin's comment. "We should hang out more." Ennui commented.

I turned to Bridgette. "You're good with animals. Any idea on how to keep the dragons from attacking us?"

Bridgette hesitated. "Well, they're reptiles..." she said slowly, "So that makes things harder. We have to make sure the dragons won't attack us, while getting close enough to one to get a vial of their drool."

It was actually the Goths who managed to help us. The Ice Dancers were trying to scare them away from doing the challenge by telling them Loki was in danger. But according to Ennui, Loki had an idea – to be bait while there was a bucket placed next to the tree he stood on. The dragon drooled at the idea of eating a rabbit, and it landed in the bucket. The Goths, who for some reason had all the dragons scared of them, scooped up some of the drool in their vial, then took Loki and left to get the next travel tip.

The minute they had left, we ran out. Bridgette scooped up the venom into the vial, and we ran to get our next travel tip.

The kid handed it over, and I looked at it. "Another All-In. Prepare to meet your loom?"

Bridgette checked it out. "We have to search through a pile of rugs and find one with the globe on it. We just had to find one.

Well, that was probably our big downfall. We'd been one of the quickest to get the venom, with the Goths just ahead and the Ice Dancers right behind. After ten full minutes of searching, both of the others in the top three were gone and we were still looking. We didn't find a rug until after Kitty and Emma had found one, and Carrie and Devin had just found theirs. We just made it into fourth place, behind the Sisters. Although, all of us had to stay well away from Josee, who was throwing another tantrum because she and Jacques came in second. Couldn't she just leave it out for once? (However, I was smart enough not to say this out loud. After I told her to leave Geoff alone, I knew she had it in for me, and it was best to lay low until she forgot about it).

I noticed Devin looked happier than he had earlier. "Has he moved past depression?" I whispered to Carrie.

"Yes!" Carrie smiled radiantly. "Now it's just a matter of waiting for the right time to tell him how I feel."

I grinned at her. "Good luck. I'm sure that this time, it'll work."

Sixth and seventh place ended up being taken by Geoff and Brody, and the Police Cadets. That left Noah and Owen, who were still searching through the pile of rugs. While Don went back to tell them they had been eliminated, Emma followed and started searching through the mounds of rugs, since Noah seemed to have disappeared. This I didn't want to miss.

"Noah? Noah!" she called. "If I could find you, I'd totally kiss you!" Yes, definitely something I wanted to see. I wouldn't interrupt them, but I SO wanted to see their first kiss.

"Here I am!" Apparently hearing this gave the shrimp the strength to get out of the rugs.

"You meet me at the final Chill Zone after I win, and we'll go on our first date, okay?" Emma said.

Noah smiled at her. "What about the 'I'd totally kiss you' thing?"

Emma didn't hesitate. She planted her lips on Noah's, and they kissed. I ran back to the Chill Zone to let them enjoy their last minutes together alone, and came back feeling happy for them, but a bit melancholy.

I kept thinking about DJ. I wondered where the show had gotten to at home. Had he seen Ryan saying that someone felt something for me? Had that even been recorded, and if it had, had anyone at home known that it was Jacques? If it even was. I couldn't tell, but I kept away from him. I didn't want to think about it.

Although, if this even counted as proof, I did catch Josee glaring at me for no reason. But then, she could've been angry about anything. I couldn't count that as jealousy or anything, especially as their relationship wasn't romantic.

The only person I told about what Ryan had said to me was Bridgette. "I don't know if I believe it." I confessed.

Bridgette smiled. "It would make sense. I've noticed that there is something a little different about the way Jacques acts around you. I mean, have you seen what it's like when he and Josee are working together? When they're actually doing something as a team, he always looks a tiny bit nervous, like he's scared that the least little thing will set her off. He's always more relaxed when you talk to him."

I shrugged. "That's nothing. Josee is probably a scary person to have as a partner. I mean, she's thrown like ten tantrums in eighteen episodes!"

Bridgette only raised an eyebrow, giving me a knowing look. I sighed. The only problem was, what was I going to do about it?

**I only came up with this idea a few days ago. Is it true? Does Jacques really have a thing for Elle? And If he does, how will that affect the game?**


	81. Chapter 81: Chick Buggies

**Let's find out the answer to last chapter's questions! Thanks for reviewing, Gage the Hedgehog, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart and StarHeartSpecials.**

Thank heavens we didn't spend too long in Indonesia. I'd seen enough Komodo dragons to last a lifetime. Our next location was Las Vegas.

We arrived among a bunch of neon signs, but the tip told us to take a taxi to the Don Box. As a matter of fact, our taxi driver drove like a madman, so we got a headstart. A headstart we kind of needed.

Bridgette grabbed the tip. "Either-Or." she read. "Dune Buggy Bonanza, or Magic Show."

I thought about it. "Does it say what kind of magic?" I asked.

Bridgette shook her head.

"Does it say what to do with the dune buggy?"

"One of us has to collect three flags in under a minute, while the other controls it."

"Well, we've got a headstart." I theorized. "Let's check out what to do for the magic show, then pick."

We both decided on dune buggies after we saw that one of us would be in danger of being mauled by a lion while trying to make it disappear. However, by the time we got there, Geoff and Brody were already acing the challenge.

I took the controls while Bridgette jumped into the buggy, then I went up to the top of the tower, where Brody was controlling Geoff's buggy.

"What's your best time so far?" I asked.

"Sixteen seconds." Brody answered.

I frowned. "So...you've done the challenge already?"

Brody shrugged. "We were the first team here, and this was so much fun so we decided to do it again!"

I wasn't too bad at video games – a lot of practice from childhood, so although I drove more carefully than Brody had, we didn't have to make too many attempts. All the same, we only just managed a fifty-eight second record, and that was after the Police Cadets and Sisters arrived. Kitty was just starting to show serious road rage on the controls (ignoring Emma's yelling), and MacArthur was arguing with her, yelling that she was going to break her thumbs (not listening to Sanders). Meanwhile, Geoff and Brody had completed the challenge five more times.

"Brody, are you guys ever gonna switch roles?" I asked. "I mean, you get the flags and Geoff controls?"

Brody grinned. "Thanks for reminding me, Elle! Once we're finished this time, we'll do that."

We passed the Magic Show people on the way. I didn't see the Best Friends or Goths anywhere, but I saw Jacques as the assistant in the magic show, struggling with the lion. Guess most people chose Dune Buggies. That, or both the formentioned couples either hadn't arrived, or had finished the challenge.

At least Bridgette and I relaxed a little bit and didn't have to run so fast. And we still managed to get second place this time, behind the Goths.

"So...you guys did magic?" I asked.

"Yeah." Ennui said.

"Can I ask..?" I said shyly. "How did you do that? The Ice Dancers were struggling a lot."

"The lion tried to eat Loki." Crimson answered. "Once we got him out, the magician offered us a full job, but we said no."

I couldn't help smiling. "Wow! Don't mind me saying this, I know you hate positive, but...you guys are pretty awesome people."

As I didn't expect an answer to that, I wasn't too surprised when they just nodded politely and didn't reply properly.

The Police Cadets and Sisters showed up soon after us, followed by Geoff and Brody, FINALLY. The Ice Dancers and Best Friends both took a long time to show up, neck and neck. Eventually, the Best Friends lost by centimetres.

"Carrie," Devin spoke up, "I'm so sorry. It's totally my fault. But, I realized something. I-"

"Did you realize this is a non-elimination round?" Don interrupted. "Cause it is!"

Bridgette nudged me. "Did you see the look on Devin's face?"

"What are you talking about?" I whispered back.

"You've seen the way Carrie looks at him most of the time." she said in a low voice. "Devin was looking at her the way she usually looks at him."

It took a moment before this sank in. "Okay." I frowned. "So was he going to tell her that he loved her? I have to ask him."

So that evening, while everyone was off doing their own thing (Geoff and Bridgette were probably making out somewhere, Jacques and Josee appeared to be arguing in low voices, Carrie was talking to the Sisters about something, etc), I went up to Devin and said "Hey, can I talk to you for a moment?"

Devin gave me a friendly smile. "What's up, Elle?"

"Thing is," I said, "I don't know if you remembered, but back in Australia, there was something Carrie wanted to tell you, but I don't think she ever got the chance to. I'm not going to explain it, because it's her place to tell you, but Bridgette noticed something today. You wanted to tell Carrie something, right?"

Devin's face had gone from thoughtful, to "lightbulb", to surprised, to happy. "I did." Devin admitted. His face changed as he looked at me again. "You know, I remember when you were on Total Drama Island. And you were the one that wanted everyone to get along, and was basically helping everyone who should be a couple hook up. So...what I'm asking is, can you help me?"

I tilted my head to the side. "And how would I do that?"

"You can keep a secret, right?" Devin said. I nodded, and he said in a low voice "I didn't realize it until I nearly accidentally let her be lion bait, but I'm in love with Carrie. And all I want to do is tell her."

I suddenly smiled. "Bridgette was right. She suspected that you felt that way when she saw the way you looked at her. Listen, I guess this is where I should explain it...back in Hawaii, Kitty and I were talking to Carrie. And last time we talked to her, she felt the same way. She wanted to tell you in Australia, but didn't get the chance, and then she wanted to wait until you were over your ex-girlfriend..."

Devin groaned. "You mean she's been in love with me for some time? Oh, I wish I'd known! Then maybe I'd have realized it earlier! She's been so patient with me getting all depressed and crazy recently – I should've guessed that would be the only reason she'd put up with it!" His face became desperate. "Elle, can you help me find a way to tell her?"

I gave him a reassuring smile. "All you have to do is be straight, Devin. Next time we're on a flight, just tell Carrie, and the rest should play itself out."

Devin frowned. "Are you sure? That seems just...I don't know, so simple."

I laughed. "Hey, the way I got with DJ was just hanging out with him, talking about stuff, flirting a little bit, and then he got all shy and then gave me a kiss on the cheek. If you want, you can try that. Just try a cheek kiss, and then tell her."

Devin still looked really doubtful, but he said "Thanks for the help. I'll try."

**Poor Devin! He has no idea! I felt like I should enlighten him, at least. Sorry for how short the chapters have been recently. This challenge was so simple. At least, I do like the Mexico episode, and it'll be fun to write the Superteam challenge.**


	82. Chapter 82: Chilli Out!

**Mexico. Huh, somewhere I don't really know much about. Some stuff I've read about sounds cool. Other stuff, not so much. Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart and Gage the Hedgehog.**

That night in the desert was actually a lot colder than I'd expected. I guess I should've, though. But finally, I was over, and we had to get our tips.

The Goths, of course, got the first tip. "'It's time to go to Mexico'." Crimson read out. "Ole."

We all had to take a bus full of chickens from Vegas to get to our next destination. Well, I heard about the cows' plane from Kelly and Taylor, so this was pretty similar.

While on the bus, the first thing Kitty did was take one of her selfies. "Say cheese, chiquita!" she sang out. At least _someone _was happy. Well, Geoff and Brody were happy, too. They'd taken some bus station burritos with them.

"Are you guys seriously gonna eat those?" I asked. "Last time I ate something from a bus station, I wasted an hour in the bathrooms."

"Iron stomach, sis!" Geoff said. "We can take anything."  
"Oh, and I can't?" I challenged. "If both of us can take Chef's food with the same results, I'm pretty sure those burritos are going to have the same effect on you."

Oh well, I couldn't stop them from eating the food. But they'd have to learn. Sometimes the annoying little sister was right.

Meanwhile, Devin, seeing the massive amount of chicken faeces on the seats, offered his lap to Carrie. She declined, saying she'd find her own seat. In fact, she was acting weird. Okay, if she'd decided to get over him, just when Devin had fallen for her...oh wow, movie cliché!

Meanwhile, the Ice Dancers were talking in low voices, shooting glares at the Goths, so I crept to the seat behind them to hear what they were saying.

"Maybe goths don't have weaknesses." Jacques was saying.

"_Everyone _has a weakness." Josee said. Her voice was quiet, but hard. She looked over at them, and I guess she saw something, because she looked back at Jacques and hissed "Weakness!"

The minute we reached Alcupoco, Geoff and Brody headed off the bus, the burritos having taken their toll. Meanwhile, Jacques started chattering pleasantly to the Goths. "So, do you like stuff?"

"Not particularly." Crimson answered.

"Stuff is so mainstream." Ennui added.

Jacques laughed, in such a fake way that even Josee gave him a weird look. "Oh, you're funny! Anyone ever tell you this?"

"No." chorused the two emos.

And then, in an obvious fake-out, Jacques cried "Oh, look out, I tripped and now I'm falling!" He fell over, knocking over Ennui in the process. "Oh, I'm sorry, let me help you up! Who knew you could knock over someone wearing such big chunky boots?"

I looked at Bridgette. "Did you hear that?" I whispered.

She shook her head. "What?"

"Not sure." I frowned. "Jacques was definitely up to something there. He's not a good actor. But I'm not sure what he was doing. He basically just fell over on purpose, and knocked Ennui over too. That was about it."

Bridgette shrugged. "Who knows?"

We reached the Don Box first, though. It was an All-In. Basically, one team member would eat a pepper, and the other would dive into the nearby lake from a height depending on the pepper. The hottest pepper meant the lowest height, the medium meant the medium height, and the mild pepper meant diving from the highest point. Whoever ate it would wave the corresponding coloured flag, and the diver would find the next travel tip attached to a canteen of just enough milk to cool the burn.

"You wanna dive?" I asked Bridgette. I was the one who could stand the most spicy food.

Bridgette smiled. "Probably a good idea. Which pepper are you taking?"

I shrugged. "Medium? The hottest pepper could be crazy, but I'm not mean enough to take the mild."

It didn't impress me any further when Devin tried the hottest pepper and started screaming. MacArthur didn't find it all sunshine and rainbows either. "Sanders, jump! I need milk!" she roared.

I took the medium pepper, and kept it at the roof of my mouth, chewing and swallowing, chewing and swallowing. My mouth was still burning, but my tongue was mostly all right. It did take a long time – in fact, Emma, Ennui and Josee were already up. I could see Carrie and Emma standing near each other, and...what was Josee doing? She seemed to be talking to Bridgette rapidly. What was going on? I don't think she'd ever spoken to Bridgette before.

I grabbed the green flag and began waving it. Devin had tried that pepper himself, but failed.

"Elle, is he OK?" Carrie called down.

I glanced over at Kitty, who was also looking over at Devin. "You may wanna start climbing!" she called up. She ate her own one.

"Doing great, Kitty!" I heard Emma calling from the medium height. Just as she said that, her sister began screaming, and I felt proud of myself. At least I'd managed to keep quiet. Yeah, my mouth was on fire and I may never be able to speak clearly again, but I didn't scream.

Geoff and Jacques both took a medium pepper. Geoff waved the green flag like crazy, calling to Brody to jump. Jacques started screaming in French.

Bridgette dived, and I waited for her to surface. As that happened, Crimson took the hottest pepper. "Ow." was her only reaction.

Bridgette finally surfaced. She held up the milk canteen wordlessly, and I took it, chugging.

Further away, Kitty was finishing her milk, and Emma was going on about how good a team they were when there were no boys around...then saying Noah's name instead of Kitty's.

Ennui gave Crimson her canteen. "Thanks." she said. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Ennui said. He was talking in his usual monotone, but even I could detect some dullness.

"But you're so emotional." Crimson said.

Finally, Ennui said "Loki's gone."

My tongue finally recovered from the spice overload, and my brain went into overdrive. "Do you remember when he was last with you? Anything happen that could've caused him to get lost? My boyfriend used to have a rabbit who got lost several times – he called it Bunny."

I turned to Bridgette. "What's the travel tip?"

Bridgette read it out. "Burroed Alive. We have to ride donkeys to the next Chill Zone." She didn't look at me as she spoke.

I frowned. "Is something wrong, Bridge?"

Bridgette still didn't meet my eyes. "Funny, I was going to ask you the same question." she said, and I detected a tremble in her voice.  
This was weird. "I don't get it. Why wouldn't I tell you if something was wrong? And why won't you look at me? What's going on?"

Finally, Bridgette looked me in the eye and I could see fire in her green eyes. "Just answer me, Elle." she said, a harsh tone to her voice. "Did you even _want _to team up with me on this show? Or did you do it just because you were going to sign up anyway and Geoff mentioning I wanted to do this was just convenient? Because you don't really spend that much time with me outside of the challenges."

I was taken aback. I'd expect that kind of talk from Courtney, but not from easygoing Bridgette. "Of course I wanted to team up with you!" I said automatically. "Bridgette, you're like my sister. You, Geoff and DJ are the three most important people in my life. And let's be honest here – I love DJ, but you're the one I'd want to be with on something like this. Why are you attacking me like this? I make friends with everyone anyway – I had no idea you thought like that."

Bridgette's gaze went to the ground. "I'm sorry." she mumbled. "It's just..."

She explained after we'd saddled up the donkeys and had started the long trek. "Thing is, just while we were on the ledge, ready to jump, Josee said that you'd told Jacques that you'd regretted pairing up with me for-"

"Wait, what?" I stared at her. "_Josee _said that? And you actually _believed _her? Why in the HELL would you listen to her? We both know she's as sneaky and conniving as Heather was three years ago. Don't you get it? She wanted you to get mad at me."

And now the only teams behind us were the Goths and the Best Friends – in fact, Josee had jumped and gotten the travel tip while Bridgette had expressed those suspicions. And now I thought about it, she'd looked over at us in a suspiciously satisfied manner.

We did pass Geoff and Brody, eventually. But that only made us fourth, a definite step down from Vegas. The Police Cadets had won, followed by the Ice Dancers and Sisters.

The Best Friends came in fifth, although Devin had gotten pepper juice in his eyes and would be temporarily vision-impaired for at least another few hours. Carrie got the doctor on the show to check him out, but apparently Devin would be fine in a few days.

Geoff and Brody arrived sixth. "We almost got beaten by burritos!" Geoff commented. "Who would've known!"

"I did." MacArthur snickered.

"No, you didn't!" Sanders protested. "It was me!"

I shrugged. "Tried to warn you, bro. I'm just glad you guys are still in this."

The Goths came in last, but they'd found Loki, at least. They were eliminated. "I wish you luck in whatever circus or cult you end up in." Don said, frowning at their non-reaction. "Go away."

By that time, I'd figured out that Jacques had been the one to take Loki when he knocked Ennui over. It didn't help that he and Josee high-fived as the Goths left.

Okay, so I'd left them alone before. But I'd told Josee to quit messing with those I cared about. So I decided to confront her again.

"Okay, can you _please _stop trying to mess with everyone I care about?" I said impatiently. "Last time someone chose to do that on a reality show, they were obliterated. The time before that, the person's crush manipulated them, kneed them, pushed them off a volcano, trampled them, and left them to recover from being covered in lava. Seriously, Josee. We leave you alone, you leave us alone."

I walked away, but Josee followed. "Well, you stop making moves on _my _partner!" she hissed. "I know what you're up to, little Miss Innocent!"

I turned and said straight back "If your partner wants to be friends with me, big deal! And if it's anything more, I'm not the one making moves! So just leave us alone!"

She did leave me alone after that, but I knew that we hadn't heard the last from her.

**Yeah...at this point, the conflict between the Beach Babes and Ice Dancers is more pronounced than the one between the Ice Dancers and Police Cadets. But that's more due to the focus in this story.**


	83. Chapter 83: Catfish and Catty Women

**Okay, finally! Superteam time! Thanks for reviewing, Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart, Gage the Hedgehog, and the guest reviewer.**

Before the Police Cadets took their tip the next morning, MacArthur taunted the Ice Dancers with her muscles while Sanders laughed. "Watch the glutes!" To be honest, the identical looks on Jacques and Josee's faces were kind of cute.

This time, we were on our way to Can Tho, Vietnam, all on the same flight. The next Don Box would be next to the Mekong river.

"Can we try and get seats behind the Ice Dancers?" I hissed to Bridgette. "If they're planning to get to us again, I want to know beforehand. I know for a fact that Josee has it out for me now."

We managed to get the seats I wanted, but for most of the flight, we didn't hear much. It didn't help that they were talking very quietly. I'd almost given up, when Bridgette nudged me. "Did you hear that?" she whispered.

"Hear what?"

My teammate gestured to the seats in front of us, and I leaned in to listen.

"I _knew _your plan to manipulate them was stupid! I told you, they're too close to each other, but you had to try anyway, and now they're both on to you!" Jacques was saying.

"Shut up!" Josee snapped. "My plan worked! It's not my fault Bridgette decided to ask Elle straight. And besides, I know the real reason you didn't want them eliminated."

"Oh, and what's that supposed to mean?"

"That you like Elle too much to man up and accept that she and her friend are a threat!"

I froze. Had everyone been right? Now was the moment of truth. Whatever Jacques said to that would be the moment I knew.

The pause in speech felt like an eternity, but I heard Jacques reply. FINALLY. "The Police Cadets and Best Friends are more of a threat than the Beach Babes! And besides, Elle may be nice and pretty, but she will not distract me from the competition."

"Good." Josee said in the voice that I'd learned meant she was going to lose it if she didn't get the reply she wanted. "And to make sure she isn't a distraction to you, today we will 'accidentally' cause them to be...delayed."

"I don't think-" Jacques began, then I heard him sigh. "Fine. But could you _stop _implying that I am weak enough to let someone distract me from the competition?"

"Oh, of course!" Josee said mockingly. "I mean, it's not like you're in love with her, or anything..._right_?"

I knew that no one believed it when Jacques replied "Of course not!"

Bridgette and I looked at each other. "It's true, then?" I said finally. "Jacques...likes me?"

"Which means that Josee really has it in for you." Bridgette added. "We better be sure to keep out of their way today."

I gave the camera my feelings. "If you're watching right now, DJ, don't even think about it. You're worth at least a million times more than Jacques. I miss you!"

We landed in Vietnam during the late afternoon/early evening, about 4:30. We managed to grab a taxi to the Mekong River, and ended up in third place.

Bridgette took our tip. "A Superteam challenge?" she frowned. "We have to do this Vietnam-style thing called catfish noodling. With two other teams."

At that moment, we heard MacArthur yelling "Hey! We need another pair of butts over here!"

I shrugged and smiled. "Guess that's our cue." We ran and jumped into the boat with the Police Cadets and...

the Ice Dancers.

I didn't groan audibly, but I was pretty disappointed. I would've rather worked with the Sisters, Best Friends, Geoff and Brody – anyone other than the Ice Dancers. ESPECIALLY with the Police Cadets being the other team – I had no problem with them, but this meant we'd be caught between a major rivalry. As if the rivalry concerning us wasn't enough!

But, as Bridgette reminded me later on, the good thing about the Superteam challenge was that there was no way the two of them could kick us off yet.

I took a deep breath, and smiled at the rest of the Superteam. "Hey, Sanders, MacArthur. Jacques, Josee. So, let's get going."

Catfish noodling meant putting our hands in the water as bait, and letting the fish latch onto us and put them in the boat. Once we'd caught six, that was enough. And if we caught a particular one, with the Ridonculous Race brand on it, we could just skip the next challenge and go straight to the Chill Zone.

"We need strategy, guys." I said. "Like, scare the fish to one place and have someone in the boat to pull them in."

But no one was listening. Once we'd rowed into the middle of the river, the Police Cadets and Josee dived in. Bridgette and I exchanged glances and dived in too.

Jacques stayed in the boat, putting on gloves, ignoring it when Josee yelled at him. "Jacques, get in here and noodle us some fish already! For the love of gold, this is just fish! And take off those gloves!"

"Never!" declared Jacques.

Sanders got the first fish, but it made itself scarce when it heard MacArthur yelling.

"Got one!" I called out, as I felt a sucking pressure on my hand, and I had to swim to the boat quickly to put the catfish in. "One down, five to go!"

Sanders actually got a second one after that, but MacArthur grabbed it off her to bitch-slap Josee with it, because...just because.

Okay, I would've done it too, given the chance, but not if it hindered a challenge.

I was very glad when Sanders finally took charge. "Listen up, team!" she said sternly. "In case you hadn't noticed, we're losing!"

At the same time, I tried to pull MacArthur and Josee apart. "Stop it, you two!" I snapped. "Your fighting is going to lose us this challenge! Listen."

"Thank you, Elle." Sanders said, before turning back to the others. "See what they're doing?" She pointed to the other team.

"They're...co-op-er-at-ing." Josee said shakily. "I was not born with that gene."

"Okay," Sanders said, "Obviously, we hate each other."

"Absolutely." Josee agreed.  
"I hate her more." MacArthur added.

"But right now, couldn't we hate them more," Sanders continued, "Because they're beating us?"

We all agreed to a truce, although Sanders had to tell MacArthur off again before she agreed. But finally, our new team leader said "I've been thinking about what our strategy should be."

"I have an idea." Josee offered. She pointed at a crocodile on the shore. "Sabotage, anyone?"

MacArthur joined her as they went off to sabotage the other team by taking advantage of Devin's still-fuzzy eyesight, claiming the crocodile was a giant catfish within his earshot.

I smiled at Sanders, as she and Bridgette and I stuck our hands in the water to keep getting the catfish. "How did you get everyone to listen to you?" I asked. "I was going to suggest strategy when we got here, but everyone had dived in before I finished."

"I train for a position in authority." Sanders grinned back. "I try to be fair and stand back a bit, but when it really matters, I have to get tough – we learn that at the academy MacArthur and I are training at. It's the only way to get everyone, even the really bossy people, to listen to me."

Even so, the Sisters, Surfer Dudes and Best Friends were done before us. We were all furious.

Suddenly, Jacques let out a cry. "The branded catfish! I see it!"

I gave a squeal. "Awesome! If we catch that, you guys will be like my best friends forever!"

And wouldn't you know it, it latched on to Jacques straightaway. It didn't matter that he freaked out at having a fish on his hand. We were given directions that told us exactly how to get to the Chill Zone.

Our team was referred to as the Axis of Evil after that. We were all tied for first place, so I was okay with that.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but...should we keep the Axis of Evil together until the final three?" Sanders suggested.

MacArthur even shook hands with Josee on it.

"Count us in!" I agreed, shaking hands with both of them.

"What?" Bridgette asked.

"Chill!" I whispered back. "This is just to make sure they can't eliminate us. We'll keep away from the Ice Dancers so they can't accidentally-on-purpose delay us without making it look suspicious, and we could help the Cadets out once in a while."

I decided, just to seal the deal, that maybe I should try to make Josee hate me just a little less. I summoned up all my acting skills and said "Hey, Josee, there's something I want to say to you."

"Mm-hm?" the female Ice Dancer said, looking as if she expected me to say something mean.

"I wanted to apologize to you." I said, trying to sound sincere. "I really wish I hadn't said some of the things I said to you earlier in the race. I know that you just want to win, like the rest of us. I was being sort of unfair, and now that we're in an alliance...I wanted to make things right." And there was a grain of truth there. I really did regret what I'd said...but only because it made her want me out of the race.

I didn't say anything more to Jacques, but Bridgette and I talked pleasantly with the Cadets. They were both nice, even if MacArthur was a little...loud and obnoxious.

The Sisters came in fourth, and Geoff and Brody just made it in, ending up in fifth place. The Best Friends were last.

"You're the last to arrive." Don told them. "I'm sorry, but you're out of the race."

Both looked downcast, but before leaving, Carrie suddenly said "Wait a minute." She turned to her teammate. "Um, homie, back in the tunnels, I think you were...um...trying to tell me something?"

"Yes!" Devin said, blushing a little. "Yes, I was. I wanted to tell you..." He trailed off, and his eyes met mine. They were clear now, obviously seeing fine, and I nodded, mouthing _Now or never. Tell her!_

"I wanted to tell you, Carrie," Devin repeated, "That I...I...I'm in love with you. And I'm sorry it took me so long to realize it. To realize what a wonderful person you are, and how lucky I am to have you in my life. And if by some crazy chance that you feel the same way-"

Carrie's eyes had gone wide when he'd finally gotten the first words out, but now, she cut him off with a kiss. The first kiss between them ever. It was beautiful.

"Awww!" I heard Kitty say softly.

"Excuse me." said Don, frowning. The couple stopped kissing and looked at him. "I am happy for you two, but this is a game show, not a dating show. And you two are out. I wish you both luck in whatever comes your way."

Devin and Carrie smiled, waved to everyone else, and walked off into the sunset, hand in hand.

**Yep, I kept the Surfer Dudes in and kicked the Best Friends out early! I figured, if it's gonna happen, it might as well happen here. Besides, did we really need another three episodes of Carrie trying to act like she was over Devin and him trying to tell her how he felt? I mean, I love the confession in canon, but it needed to be earlier – and without shirtless Ryan there to accidentally interrupt, Devin had the chance to say it. And the Surfer Dudes getting further feels more legit, ja? OK, I don't know why I went German there, but you get the point.**


	84. Chapter 84: Cold Burn

**Greetings, amigos and amigas (Actually, let me know if you're male or female, I'd like to see which gender reads my stuff). We're on to Russia next. Now, I've never been there, but after hearing about the temperature, I don't think I'd be able to stand it there. New Zealand is cold in the winter, but nothing compared to an English winter, so a Russian winter...TERROR. Thanks for reviewing, SilverWriter0927 (cool username change) and Gage the Hedgehog.**

Because we only had the evening in Vietnam, we had a pretty chill night. Bridgette let the boys know about our Axis of Evil agreement (although our real alliance would still be with them) and reminded them to stay away from the Ice Dancers, while I didn't tell the Sisters about the alliance, but did give them a minor warning, to make things fair. Both girls nodded and smiled at me, and for the first time, I noticed how much Emma had mellowed out since she had made it official that she was Noah's girlfriend.

The next morning, we let the Ice Dancers take the first tip, and the Police Cadets got the second, so we got the third one. Our flight was to Siberia.

The flight we all caught would've left without the Sisters and Geoff and Brody, if not for the pilot, who seemed to be talking slowly on purpose. Still, even though it would've given us an eight-hour lead, I was sort of glad. At least I knew that I could count on some people on that flight. I wasn't sure about the Police Cadets, even now, but at least we could trust them to target the Ice Dancers before us.

I took our tip when we got to the Russian airport. "We have to ice yacht to the deep borehole...in swimsuits." I read. Oh great, Bridgette had a proper wetsuit and I had to wear a bikini. Lucky her – Siberia was more like an icy land than Iceland! Okay, sorry for the terrible pun, but it's true!

I wasn't the only one in a bikini, though. The Sisters and Police Cadets all wore them. Josee had a one piece, though, and Jacques actually wore a speedo (although he didn't look half as good in one as Alejandro did – and this coming from the girl who swore to take Alejandro down in World Tour).

Anyway, eyeing everyone else's swimsuits was how I saw Josee accidentally-on-purpose shoving MacArthur (and apologizing), and as a result, getting the muscly cadet's tongue frozen stuck to a trash can.  
"This scenario seem familiar to you at all?" I murmured to Bridgette. She couldn't help a little smile of nostalgia, and we both sang "_She got stuck, should have ducked, worst of luck...stuck, stuck to a can!"_

"I'll see if I can help her get it off." Bridgette offered. "You grab an ice yacht. I'll be back in two minutes."

It was a good thing I did grab one, because Josee was already loosening the screws on one of the yachts, and the others had already gone. Bridgette was back before Josee was done, and we set off.

We couldn't see the Sisters, but Geoff and Brody were just ahead of us. "Should I pass 'em?" I called to Bridgette.

"Yeah, but don't cut them off!" Bridgette called back.

We reached the hole some time before the boys, but still long after the Sisters – and the Ice Dancers had just passed us and were talking about the next challenge. After we got dressed again, we went to the Don Box Bridgette took the tip this time. "All-In." she read. "One of us will be lowered down the hole by the other. Then they'll have to find a red ball, and then the partner will pull them up and head to the Chill Zone."

By that time, Emma was already lowering Kitty down, and Josee was prepared to be the one lowered down. Bridgette and I looked at each other carefully. "Who's got the most upper body strength?" I said doubtfully. We were mostly equal.

"No offence, but I think it might be me." Bridgette said. "Balance is part of strength, right?"

I nodded. "Okay, so you lower me down, I look for the ball." I harnessed myself up, and then took my hard hat with the light and mic which would connect me to Bridgette. She also had one.

I got down before Josee, however, because she was claustrophobic and kept screaming at Jacques to pull her back up.

But when I got down, the person who was lowered down only seconds later wasn't Josee.

"Kitty?" I frowned. "Weren't you on your way up?"

"Yeah, but Josee took my ball and then smashed my light." Kitty scowled. "I can barely see anything!"

"I'll help you!" I offered. "Once I've found my ball, we can switch headsets and get Emma and Bridgette to swap mics."

"Sounds good!" Bridgette said into my headphones.

I found one pretty easily. "Okay." I said into my mic. I switched hats, headsets and mics with Kitty and said "Emma, can you switch mics with Bridgette? I gave Kitty my light."

"Okay, thanks, Elle!" Emma answered before I heard a shuffle and Bridgette asking "Got one?"

"Yep!" I said happily. "Pull me up!"

I passed Brody about fifteen seconds after Bridgette started pulling me up. "Good luck, dude!" I grinned at him. "Shouldn't be too hard to find the balls."

We still only ended up in second place. About halfway, I met Sanders coming down, and I wished her luck as well...except she was going down so quickly, I doubted MacArthur was holding back at all.

"What's MacArthur doing right now?" I asked Bridgette. "And did she bring the trash can with her?"

"No, she got it off somehow. And she just let go of the wheel." Bridgette answered. "I can hear Sanders screaming from her mic, even from here!"

We ended up in second place, behind the Ice Dancers. They had gotten a penalty, but everyone else took so long that it had ended quite some time before anyone else reached the Chill Zone. But that was the thing – Don didn't meet us there. And that's how we heard it.

"No surrender, no distractions, right?" Josee was saying. "That's what we agreed on when we became partners? We stay focused, and we win! So why did you stop me today when I wanted to crush those dumb blondes? They wouldn't have seen it coming!"

Jacques gave a sigh and said "Okay, okay. I do think the cadets are more of a threat, but the reason I don't want to eliminate the Beach Babes is because...I really want to get the chance to ask Elle out, and she won't agree if we eliminate her. Don't underestimate her, Josee. She's been watching you, I know she has. If she thinks I'm just like you, she'll never say yes."

Okay. This was it. Moment of truth. I'd have to say it.

I stepped in front of them. "Sorry, but I already think you two are alike. You're right, Jacques, but the fact that Josee is more ruthless than you doesn't change the fact that _you _were the one who kidnapped Loki. I'm not going to ask why you let him go, but it doesn't matter. Ennui may not have shown much emotion, but even I could tell how heartbroken he was that his rabbit was gone. Crimson got all emotional after he told her, too...well, for her, at least." I took a breath, and said "Jacques, I'm flattered that you want to ask me out, but the thing is, even if I didn't know that, I'd still say no. You _know _I already have a boyfriend at home. I'm sure I mentioned him."

Jacques looked dejected. "You did." he admitted. "But I figured that if I supported you, you would forget about him and..."

"Okay, you're making me like you less and less by the minute." I said. "Just keep away from us. And that goes for your sneaky partner, too."

Don had come back by that time, and heard the end of my speech. "Nice." he grinned at me, and added for the audience's benefit "Beach Babes, you're in second place!"

The Police Cadets came in last. Some time after the boys and Sisters had arrived, balls in hand, Don got a call.

"That was the hospital." he explained when I asked. "Sanders broke her arm during the challenge, and they'll be here shortly."

Sure enough, the Police Cadets arrived, Sanders wearing a cast and MacArthur visibly subdued. Since it was a non-elimination round, Don simply asked them if they wanted to stay in the race, despite the injury. Well, he asked Sanders, at least. "The choice is yours, but you have to make it now."

The more reasonable teammate hesitated. Finally, she looked at MacArthur. "Have you learned your lesson?"  
Her partner smiled sheepishly.

Sanders turned back to Don. "I'm probably gonna regret this, but Don, we're still in the race!"

So, yes, no eliminations. And no Axis Of Evil. As we hung out in the sauna for a little while, I began to get a sinking feeling. And I had to wonder...would my rejection stop Jacques from liking me? Or would he just become more determined to win me over?

**So once again, Elle tries to be nice and screws up. To her credit, she was just being honest. **


	85. Chapter 85: Tea Leaves Plus Trains

**India next, hmm? I'm more curious about it than I am hoping to go there one day. Thanks for reviewing, silverwriter0927, Gage the Hedgehog and Thunderstrike16 (sorry, the story will end after this season).**

The next day, we were all on the same flight, again. This time it was to Darjeeling, India, and I was feeling pretty good about it. About an hour after yesterday's challenge had ended and I'd rejected Jacques, he had come up to me and said "I understand what you meant about being sneaky. But I'm not really like Josee, you know. Most of what I do is all her plan, and I'm not very good at standing up to her." His eyes flickered around before meeting mine. "I still like you a lot, Elle. I've accepted that you don't want to give me a chance romantically, but can we agree to be friends?"

Well, what choice did I have? If I said no, I'd be out of the show before I knew it. If I said yes, I might be out of the show, but at least I'd have the chance that this was genuine and I wouldn't be kicked out.

So I smiled at Jacques and said "Of course I want to be friends. I like hanging out with you."

So it was understandable that I was feeling okay about our chances that day. Geoff and Brody were still chill, but most of the other teams were changing. Emma was getting even more competitive, and Kitty wasn't exactly carefree these days. MacArthur was feeling incredibly guilty about her actions breaking Sanders' arm and had decided to let her lead their team instead. I wasn't even sure what to think about the Ice Dancers, but in any case, Bridgette and I were one of the most stable teams at that moment.

We arrived in India during the afternoon, and it was like walking out of the air-conditioned airport into a frying pan. I was glad of my halter and short skirt. I mean, compared to Kitty's warm stockings and Jacques and Josee's dance outfits (perfect for being on the ice), being bare-legged with sandals was probably bliss. Not to mention, our first challenge was outside. Although...we were the last to get the travel tip. But according to it, we had to go grab a basket each, and fill it with tea leaves. Once we were done, we'd give the baskets to a local, who would give us our next travel tip.

While Bridgette and I were picking leaves, the Ice Dancers approached us. "Hey." Josee smiled. "You know, we've been thinking, and we've decided it's time to get rid of the Sisters."

"Go tell someone who didn't tell you to leave them alone." I said, not bothering to look up, and simply inching a little way away from her. "We know what you did to Kitty last challenge. And MacArthur."

"What happened there was completely accidental!" Jacques insisted. "We didn't mean to push MacArthur! But anyway-"

"We have it planned out." Josee took over. "Part of the baskets are hooked up. Unhook them, and all the leaves will fall out. We just need a diversion."

Bridgette looked up at her, green eyes angry. "When we agreed to this alliance, we didn't agree to cheat!" she said. "Thanks, but no." We took a few steps away.

Josee's eyes flashed. "Fine." she said with a scowl. "That means that from now on, it's every team for themselves. Meaning, you two are our enemies!"

I smiled sweetly as Bridgette and I walked further away. "We'll be sure to avoid you, then!" I called. Once we were far away, I checked that they hadn't tampered with our baskets or tea leaves. Lucky for us, they hadn't.

All the same, we didn't manage to keep away from the Ice Dancers for long. After five more minutes of leaf-picking, I noticed my basket felt suspiciously light, and something was hanging down. I looked down, and sure enough, the leaves I'd already picked were in a little pile. Bridgette was still picking tea leaves, unaware of her unhooked basket.

"Bridge!" I hissed. She noticed, and we managed to save about half of our leaves before the wind blew them away. As I straightened up, I saw Josee, just a few metres away. She smirked at me, and mouthed "_Sucker!"_

I didn't bother mouthing it. "Cheaters!" I shouted.

Jacques was standing next to his partner. He looked up at me, too...and _smirked. _

I understood in a second. He hadn't ever really wanted to be friends with me. Now that I'd rejected him, he was all for betraying me.

All the same, we only finished fourth, and got the travel tip. We had to get into a train – the fourth carriage over. The fifth one held the Sisters (who they'd also tricked), with the one in front of us holding the Police Cadets. Geoff and Brody were in the second carriage, and the Ice Dancers were in the first one. In between each carriage, there were carriages full of animals. The train would take us to the Chill Zone. Our job was to get through as many carriages at possible, so as to get there before at least one other team. If no team got to the last carriage, Josee and Jacques would come in first again.

"Hello, racers in cars two through five!" Don's voice blared through the speakers. "You are free to be making your way to cabin one...now!"

Bridgette and I jumped up. "Okay, so we have to get through animal carriages." I said. I looked out. "Okay, let's go!"

It took forever to get through the carriages. No, seriously. By the time we'd busted through the third and then into the second cabin, everyone else had already gone. And then, Bridgette looked out the window.

"Look!" she pointed. "The train's not moving!"

I frowned. "What?" We soon found the answer. The train – and its first carriage, had gone, leaving the rest of the train behind.  
I scowled. "Remember when Alejandro tried to unhook the last carriage from the train while Heather was on it, in Season Three?" I asked. "I bet the Ice Dancers did the same thing to prevent everyone from getting anywhere. But if my hunch is right, everyone except the Sisters managed to get there first. C'mon, we gotta beat them to the Chill Zone!" We had to run.

I was desperate to get there. I ran furiously. If the Sisters were behind us, we still had a chance. But as the Chill Zone came into view, we got closer, closer, closer, within ear shot...

"Ice Dancers, your penalty is up. You're in fourth place."

Bridgette and I gasped as we reached the Chill Zone. We'd been beaten.

Don gave us a sympathetic smile. "Beach Babes, you're last. I'm sorry. You've been cut from the competition." We both gave sighs, and I went to each team to say goodbye.

I went to the Sisters first. Kitty took a selfie of us together as a goodbye, and I wished Emma well when she next saw Noah, and said good luck on the race.

Second, I went to the Police Cadets. I shook hands with both of them, wishing them luck, and telling them to crush the Ice Dancers.

Speaking of them, I had to say goodbye to them too. I smiled sweetly at Josee and said "I hope you lose. Or at least get what every reality show villain should get. Although, to be honest, I don't wish the lava on you that Alejandro got."

To Jacques, I said "Nice move, traitor. You've probably already worked this out, but you _aren't _my friend any more, and you never will be again."

I gave Brody a hug, and while Bridgette finished saying her goodbye to Geoff and waved to the other contestants, I gave him a huge hug.

"Win for us." I whispered. "And whatever you do, don't let the Ice Dancers beat you. You and Brody will rock this!"

Geoff smiled. "I'll see you at the final Chill Zone, sis. I'll be the one with half a million dollars."

And with that, Bridgette and I were gone. But we had to make a final confessional, while the producers put together farewell footage of our best moments in the race.

"I was so desperate to win this one!" I remarked sadly. "Five reality show seasons, and I still haven't won."

"Hey, we had fun." Bridgette said. "And I've never gotten that far before. I really enjoyed this season."

"That's true." I agreed. "At least I made some new friends. Kitty, Ryan, Carrie, Jen...even Taylor."

"And don't forget Laurie and Miles." Bridgette grinned. "I'm keeping in touch with them."

"We'll be at the finale." I said. "This isn't the last you'll see of us!"

**It won't, but the last chapters are coming soon! This story is drawing to a close soon.**


	86. Chapter 86: WinningYet Not Winning

**Well, let's keep moving! We're nearly done! Thanks for reviewing, SilverWriter0927 (sorry), Gage the Hedgehog (what?), behind-the-heart and the guest reviewer.**

Every team on the show that had been cut had already had a hotel room booked for them in NYC, the location of the last Chill Zone. There were only six more days until the finale, but for now, we could do as we liked. And if nothing else, it was nice to see everyone.

Taylor, for one thing, was getting on much better with Kelly. She was still annoyed because Kelly had cancelled her allowance, but they were much better together. Taylor didn't constantly berate her mom, and Kelly stood up for herself and didn't take any crap from her daughter. They still shopped together a bit, and Taylor still got loads of things bought for her. One time, she made me come with them, and I actually did get some clothes, now I didn't have to worry about buying stuff worldwide.

Jen and Tom had been at work on their blog. "After you suggested doing a piece on reality show fashion," they told me, "We wrote a post about how to dress practically on a show like this while still looking gorgeous and fashionable."

Carrie and Devin were stuck together like glue. I mean, they'd been pretty close as best friends, but somehow a romantic relationship had brought them closer together. I mean, I caught one of them by themselves very occassionally, but mostly, it wasn't Carrie and Devin, it was Carrie-and-Devin-who-are-always-together. The only thing that could have made it more sickening is if they kept saying sweet stuff to each other, but really, their relationship didn't seem to need words.

Ryan and Stephanie were inseparable, too, to a lesser degree. "We figured we were spending too much time together." Ryan confided to me. "That's why we fought so much under pressure. As long as we don't spend too much time together, we find it a lot easier to appreciate – and love – each other." When I talked to Stephanie, she certainly seemed more relaxed, and whenever she was with Ryan, they seemed loving, but not as obsessive as they were at the start of the show.

While I hung out with a lot of the teams I'd made friends with, Bridgette got talking with Laurie and Miles again, and soon, the three of them were the best of friends, although the two of us still talked a lot.

After five days, another team arrived. The other three teams, according to them, would be racing through New York the next day, with one being eliminated at the half-way point, and the final two racing to the last Chill Zone.

The team in fourth place turned out to be the Sisters. Well, I would've preferred that they go on to the finale instead of the Ice Dancers, but...

While Emma went straight to the room she'd discovered belonged to the Reality TV Pros, Kitty told me what had happened. The teams had gone to the Bahamas after a non-elimination round in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and she, along with Brody, Josee and MacArthur, had gone into an underwater tunnel to find a small sack of gold coins, but she'd ended up having to ditch her oxygen tank to get out of the tunnel. Brody had left, but Josee had run out of oxygen, and MacArthur had decided to go back and help her – yeah, of all people!

"Wow!" I said, impressed. "We are talking about _MacArthur, _right? The hotheaded bossy cadet?"

"Yep!" Kitty smiled. "We were all surprised." Then her face became serious. "Then when everyone was running for the Chill Zone, Josee threw a coconut at MacArthur in order to slow her and Sanders down."

I couldn't help scowling. "Okay, I get that she really wants to win, but that was _so _wrong. Did MacArthur yell at her for that?"

Kitty nodded. "And Josee basically said that saving her life was in the past."

My face was set. "If she and Jacques win, I'm going to do some serious damage. They'll probably be lucky to walk again, let alone skate." Then I sighed. "Nah, I'm not really going to break anything. But I will be furious."

Luckily, when the sixteen of us teams were sitting next to the final Chill Zone, watching the live camera on the halfway point Chill Zone, we saw the Surfer Dudes get the next tip soon. After a slightly problematic ending for the Police Cadets, when their tip fell down a drain and Sanders had to rip her cast off to grab it...

They did it. The Ice Dancers were in third place. They were eliminated. And five minutes after we saw Josee's final tantrum, they arrived to join the rest of the peanut gallery.

Every team got a chance to make one last confessional (although not all of them were aired in the episode).

"Geoff and Brody better win!" I said to the camera. "They promised to split the million with us and they better stick to it!"

"But even if the Police Cadets come first, it'll be a good outcome." Bridgette added. "I think they deserve it just as much as anyone else."

"Except Jacques and Josee." I finished. "Now that they've lost, I can sit back and enjoy knowing that a deserving team is going to win."

It was a close race. As Don began building up the tension for the audience we saw them running towards us. MacArthur and Sanders were ahead, but Geoff and Brody were speeding up. Everyone was rooting for their favourite team and calling out. Okay, well, Taylor was filing her nails and Jacques and Josee were scowling, but everyone else was on the edge of their seats, hoping their chosen team would win.

They were near the Chill Zone. They were running up the stairs. They were...

"The Surfers win it! One million dollars!" Don announced.

I couldn't believe it. My older brother, and his best friend had won it. They hugged each other.

"I love you, man."

"I love you too, dude."

"Well, looks like everybody's happy." Don said brightly.

"We're not!" Josee yelled from the back of the bleachers.

"For the last time, I don't care!" (It was only later on that I watched the show, and saw how much Don really disliked the two figure skaters, mainly because they cheated. In the episode we were eliminated, he actually said he had good dreams about them coming in last).

And with that, everyone was running towards them.

Sanders showed sportsmanship as she smiled. "Great job, surfers!"

"Hey, Brody, call me!" MacArthur made the motion.

While the boys enjoyed their money, everyone else gathered for the ending group shot, while Don made the outro for the season. And...

"CUT!"

I let out a breath. It was the end. The last reality show I would ever go on. I would go home, and I would live my life properly.

**Only one more chapter to go! And then, it really will be the end of Elle's story. Wow...**


	87. Epilogue: Finally!

**It's time for the last chapter! Thanks for reviewing, StarHeart Specials, Gage the Hedgehog, SilverWriter0927 and Thunderstrike16.**

Geoff and Brody stuck to their word, of course. I got two hundred and fifty thousand of the money. I also exchanged email addresses with my friends among the cast (and promised the Fashion Bloggers that I would follow their blog from then on).

Then, all we had to do was get our (previously arranged) plane back to Canada. Even with the Ice Dancers scowling away at the back, the plane was lively with everyone talking to each other and exchanging experiences. By the end of the flight, hardly anyone was with their partner. Well, Ryan and Stephanie stuck together most of the time (looked like all their relationship needed was to keep competiton out of the equation), and the Goths were still quiet and non-social (including Loki) but the rest of us were mostly chatting to each other, no longer competitors, just a bunch of people to talk to. When we were called to get back to our original seats for landing, I was talking to Carrie (she and Devin hadn't moved, but they'd talked to everyone else who passed, even so), and Bridgette was just exchanging email addresses with Miles.

I hadn't imagined how many messages and calls I'd gotten from everyone while I was in the show. Everyone – friends, family, old aquaintances, Total Drama competitors..._everyone – _had been watching, and the finale was due to air the day after I got back.

Of course, the first thing I did when I finished unpacking was call DJ. He picked up instantly.  
"Just got home." I said. "Wanna come over?"

"I'll be there soon." he promised. "I wanna hear everything about the race."

I held off on mentioning that I had a quarter of the money to DJ until after everything else. Of course, he'd been up-to-date on who was left by the end, but I had tons of behind-the-scenes info.

"Um..." But there was one slightly awkward thing. DJ brought it up. "You know, some of the footage in early episodes had you trying to make friends with the Ice Dancers. And a few episodes before you and Bridgette got eliminated, Josee was accusing Jacques of being, you know, into you..."

I gave a sigh. "Yeah. He was, but I told him to leave me alone. That's why they sabotaged us in India – he didn't take my rejection well." I shrugged. "Unless Josee manipulated him into responding that way or something. I wouldn't put it past her. Seriously, it was getting to the point where I'd welcome _Heather's _presence on the show." We both laughed, the tension broken.

Of course, my life over the next year of university was bliss. DJ and I were going to different universities, but they were both about the same distance away, so we moved in together, same as Geoff and Bridgette had earlier.

I'm never going to go on another reality show. I have enough to do in my life – like work towards being a party planner for the stars (Geoff had the same ambition, but I was determined to get there first, since I was tougher and therefore more suited for business), and keeping a little bit of fun in my life. Still, the fame didn't end. Sometimes, when I was just in the city doing nothing special, a group of teenagers would stare at me and start whispering. Once, a girl actually came up to me and said "Excuse me, but are you Elle from Total Drama?" When I said I was, she asked for my autograph, all the time saying how she thought I should've won the tiebreaker in World Tour and deserved to be in the final two way more than Alejandro had – that I should've won. Yeah, embarrassing, but flattering.

It was worse at university. I made a lot of friends there, but those that had watched Total Drama or The Ridonculous Race asked me tons of questions. Those that didn't were the ones that I became closest to. And, well, that's where I am now.

It's been six months since I competed on the Ridonculous Race, and I've had enough time on TV. It's time to get back to the real world. And as for all you guys following my story, thank you. This is Elle Symons, future party planner to the stars, signing off!

**The End**

**A/N: Hope that short epilogue wasn't too disappointing! This is, once and for all, the end of Elle's story. Originally, I ended it with World Tour, then with All-Stars, and this is the definite ending. But just so you know, I'm glad I made her Geoff's sister, because of RR. One of the best things about that show was that they managed to bring back TDI's version of Geoff.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, favourited, and followed this story to the very end. I just have one more request of you. Mind leaving just one last review? What did you think of this story as a whole? Do you think there was anyone Elle should have interacted with less or more? Thanks, guys!**


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